Chapter 153 - 148: Taming "Nefarian
The Pegasus’s coat was a rare gray-black, like clouds before a storm. Though its frame wasn’t massive, it gave off a sense of explosive power.
It simply stood there alone, its stance full of hostility, warily eyeing every creature that approached.
Bach followed his gaze. His expression changed, and he hurriedly tried to dissuade him.
"Lord Baron, not that one!"
"That one’s a maniac. It has a violent temperament and has already injured three of our Beast Tamers."
"We were about to put it down to prevent it from going berserk and hurting the other Pegasi."
But Velin acted as if he hadn’t heard.
He strode forward, heading straight for the Pegasus that everyone had already condemned.
The Pegasus immediately felt Velin’s gaze upon it.
WHOOSH—!
The dark gray feathers on its wings bristled, standing on end like a forest of blades.
It lowered its head, muscles twisting and bunching beneath its skin. A low growl rumbled deep in its throat, a clear warning.
"Lord Baron! Please stop! It’s extremely dangerous!"
Bach’s urgent voice called out from behind him.
Velin paid him no heed.
His full attention was focused on the text appearing in his vision.
[Pegasus]
[Level: Level 4 Magical Beast]
[Bloodline: Black Flame Storm (Golden Tier) 5%, Highland Pegasus (Black Iron Tier) 55%, Mixed Bloodline 40%]
[Abilities: Shadow Flame (Inactive)]
[Overall Assessment: A trace of its ancestral bloodline has manifested, but it has become the source of a bloodline conflict. Its mind is in a constant state of agitation, but its potential is immense. In the short term, Spiritual Power can be used to guide and harmonize the conflicting bloodlines. In the long term, bloodline optimization is required.]
[Calming Method: Use high-intensity Spiritual Power to forcibly organize and suppress its conflicting internal bloodlines.]
[Optimization Method: (Insufficient Spiritual Power to view)]
Velin’s heart stirred. ’The information... is more detailed than before.’
As his own Spiritual Power grew, so too did the analytical depth of his ability.
’Insufficient Spiritual Power? Then I’ll just have to increase it.’
Just as he was lost in thought, the Pegasus’s patience reached its limit.
It let out a furious screech and charged violently at the iron bars!
BOOM!
The heavy iron bars dented from the impact, letting out a deafening crash.
"Quick! Grab it with the hooked chains!"
Several Beast Tamers jumped in fright, scrambling to pull on the chains they had kept attached, trying to control the frenzied Magical Beast.
The Pegasus’s Crimson Red eyes were locked on Velin, filled with hostility.
Velin didn’t retreat.
He raised his hand, fingers spread wide.
Threads of Spiritual Power drifted toward the Pegasus, probing its chaotic consciousness.
The Pegasus’s violent struggles froze.
But a second later, it began to resist even more violently.
The foreign Spiritual Power had clearly agitated the two bloodlines within its body. They instinctively began to repel the intrusion, and this rejection only intensified the mental torment the Pegasus suffered from its bloodline conflict.
"SCREEEEEE—!"
It let out a wretched scream as the two forces collided within its body, tearing at its very soul.
Its legs could no longer support its body, and it collapsed to its knees. Its entire body trembled violently as it repeatedly slammed its massive head against the ground. THUD. THUD. THUD.
All the color had drained from Bach’s face.
Having dealt with these "inferior breeds" for years, he knew exactly what this meant.
This was a sign that the Magical Beast was about to lose control completely, its consciousness extinguished, devolving into nothing more than a mindless killing machine!
"Quick! Execute the final protocol! Kill it! We can’t let it harm the Lord Baron!" he commanded, his voice cracking with desperation.
"Wait a little longer."
Velin’s voice cut in.
The Beast Tamers, who had been about to act, froze and looked to Bach.
As the men hesitated, Velin increased his output of Spiritual Power. Following the system’s guidance, he condensed the power into a single stream and directed it toward the Pegasus’s Demon Crystal.
Chaotic aether, like boiling water, surged through the spiritual link and battered Velin’s consciousness. A sharp, piercing pain stabbed into his mind.
A cold sweat broke out on his temples, and his face grew a shade paler.
But it wasn’t enough to shake his will.
Finally, his Spiritual Power reached the chaotic Demon Crystal. Following the system’s instructions, he learned to use his power to temporarily envelop and seal it, severing the bloodlines’ influence on the Pegasus’s mind.
A few seconds later, the struggling stopped.
For the first time, the excruciating pain that had tormented it for so long was gone.
The gray Pegasus’s body gradually relaxed, and its breathing became even and deep.
It even half-closed its eyes in comfort, lying on its side, so docile it seemed like a completely different animal.
Bach and the Beast Tamers were dumbfounded.
"This... how is this possible?" a young Beast Tamer muttered, the hooked chain slipping from his grasp and clattering to the ground. "He didn’t use a Calming Potion, didn’t chant any Magic, he didn’t even activate a restraining Array... He just reached out his hand?"
Bach’s Adam’s apple bobbed. ’Impossible. It’s impossible to subdue a Magical Beast on the verge of a rampage with pure Spiritual Power alone. Not unless he could precisely seal the twenty-four aether nodes on the Pegasus’s Demon Crystal, and how could a young nobleman on his first visit to the beast grounds do that?’
’Or did I just miss Baron Velin using some kind of magic item in the chaos?’
While Bach was still lost in self-doubt, Velin issued a new command.
"Open the gate."
Bach glanced at the unbelievably docile Pegasus, then waved a hand at his subordinates.
The heavy iron gate was pulled open, leaving a gap just wide enough for a single person to pass through.
Velin approached slowly.
Before he had even entered the enclosure, the gray Pegasus struggled to its feet and came forward on its own, pressing its head against the gate so Velin could easily reach it.
Its posture was one of utter humility.
"Lord Baron," Bach said, remembering his duty. "If you’ve taken a liking to it, you’ll need to sign a master-servant contract to control it completely. Please give it a name, so that I may prepare the contract for you."
Velin stroked the Pegasus’s mane, pondering for a moment.
"Nefarian."
Bach immediately brought over a blank Magic Contract and a small knife.
He made a small cut on the Pegasus’s forehead with the knife. A single drop of dark red blood welled up and fell onto the contract.
Velin took the contract and signed his name at the bottom.
VMMMM—
The entire contract began to glow. Magic Runes surfaced one by one, then transformed into a stream of light that shot into the Pegasus’s forehead.
It let out a long, joyful cry.
The next moment, a stream of consciousness—a mix of gratitude, affection, and loyalty—flowed through the contractual bond and into Velin’s mind.
Velin led the Pegasus out of the enclosure, then vaulted onto its back.
The Pegasus—no, Nefarian—let out a clear, ringing cry as its massive, gray-black wings unfurled with a great roar!
WHOOSH—!
A powerful gust of wind kicked up a cloud of dust, forcing the people on the ground to shield their eyes.
With a powerful beat of its wings, Nefarian’s massive body shot up from the ground like a gray arrow, launching into the sky.
The wind howled in his ears.
The ground rapidly shrank away below him.
Velin sat steady on its broad back, looking down as the beast grounds shrank to a mere speck below.
This crazed beast, the one every Beast Tamer had written off as worthless, was now carrying him, a soaring gale streaking across the sky.