The Beast Tamer Clan's Monster Overlord

As Princess Tiana leaned back into the sofa once more, her eyes flicked toward the window, where the Hiro Archavan insignia a black-and-silver crest resembling a wolf encircling a mana core gleamed brightly from the opposite tower wall.

It was the official name of Axelius's company. One that, in just a single month, had begun shaking the foundation of noble-run industries.

"Hiro Archavan…" Tiana murmured with a small smirk, tapping her fan lightly against her knee. "Your name is starting to irritate the upper districts."

Axelius chuckled under his breath. "That's the idea."

Sylfia, ever silent, placed a new stack of papers beside the whitewood chest, then stepped back again. Tiana reached for the top one, sliding it across the table with her manicured finger until it sat before Axelius.

He took it, unfolded it casually—and the moment his eyes landed on the contents, his brows lifted slightly.

A blueprint.

It was messy. Sloppy. But unmistakably modeled after Hiro Archavan's second prototype carriage design almost a one-to-one copy. Mana flow circuits were redrawn with poor efficiency, and even the frame resembled the same arc-shape his team finalized last week.

Axelius didn't speak immediately.

Instead, he simply set the paper down, leaned back again, and let out a quiet, amused sigh.

Tiana mirrored his grin, her voice laced with mock innocence. "Someone got brave."

"Brave or stupid," Axelius said, tapping the page with his index finger. "They copied the outer shell and guessed the mana channels. They don't even realize there's a suppressor switch hidden beneath the chassis."

Tiana tilted her head, her smirk now bordering villainous. "We should let them build it."

Axelius chuckled darkly. "And then… let it collapse mid-drive."

Sylfia, who had no need to speak, simply nodded in agreement from her corner.

The two locked eyes for a moment, their matching expressions more fitting for schemers than allies. There was something wickedly satisfying in knowing someone tried to steal from them and failed before even realizing it.

"This is why I enjoy working with you," Tiana said, her voice smooth as silk. "You don't just build... you bait."

"And you," Axelius replied with a half-smile, "don't just fund... you burn bridges."

The two sat comfortably with their shared silence and quiet smirks,

And those who dared mimic Hiro Archavan were about to learn what it meant to play in the shadow of real wolves.

After a full day of overseeing blueprints, handling noble negotiations, approving workshop expansions, and listening to Lyrielle's endless chatter about material suppliers and new test routes, Axelius finally had a moment to breathe.

The office had cleared out. The lights inside Hiro Archavan dimmed. And the moonlight poured in from the high windows, painting silver lines across the cold floors.

He stood alone in the hallway, loosening the collar of his coat when a familiar tiny voice echoed behind him.

"My Lord," Gob's small but firm voice called from a shadow near the wall, "Lord Owen is waking up."

Axelius stopped in his tracks. his eyes gleamed, and a sharp grin pulled at the corner of his lips.

"Ohh? Finally!" he said, voice light with excitement. "He's gonna freak out when he sees what I've done."

Without wasting another second, Axelius turned on his heel and left the Hiro Archavan building behind, disappearing into the dark alleys behind the main streets, his cloak fluttering behind him like a phantom.

He rode Crow at top speed through the air, past the shining rooftops and sleeping towers, straight back to the towering gates of the Dravenhart estate. He landed, the soft thud of boots on gravel echoing through the garden path.

As he crossed the inner garden, he passed by a lounging Cyruz, who was tossing mana stones into the fountain out of boredom.

He waved lazily over his shoulder. "Busy."

"What the—?! You dare ignore me?!" Cyruz shouted, seeing Axelius rush past without so much as a glance.

"Hey! Ax—You little—!"

But Axelius didn't stop. Not even once. His full focus was now locked on the room he had long kept sealed and quiet.

He slammed the door open.

Inside, the lights flickered faintly with ambient magic. The large obsidian-colored egg that had remained unmoved for weeks now sat on the polished floor, cracking from its core.

Pieces of the stone crumbled off slowly.

Bright lines of light shone from within the shell, spiderwebbing outward like the glow of mana about to explode.

Axelius stepped closer, his eyes wide with excitement. He didn't even try to hide the grin tugging at his lips. "You better not come out ugly," he muttered with a chuckle, crossing his arms.

The air in the room shifted suddenly, thick with pressure as the egg's glow intensified.

CRACK!

A burst of force exploded outward

rock shards, molten fragments, and compressed air blasted into the room. Axelius instinctively crossed his arms in front of him, his coat flaring as debris pelted around him.

The floor cracked slightly beneath his feet from the sudden shockwave.

Smoke and dust curled around the room like mist. The glowing fragments of the egg pulsed faintly before dying out. When the light finally dimmed and the air cleared, Axelius slowly lowered his arms.

His eyes narrowed. His smirk faded.

Lying in the center of broken shards, curled with its body faintly steaming, was a serpent.

Sleek and coiled, its obsidian-black scales shimmered like polished glass, reflecting the light with a strange softness.

Each scale looked almost translucent, like layers of crystal tightly woven together. Thin trails of glowing lines ran along its spine like veins of light silver and faintly blue.

It wasn't massive, but it was long and sinuous, smooth and precise in its movement as it shifted slightly.

"A… beast serpent?" Axelius muttered, stepping closer, inspecting it with a frown. "Not a monster?"

Still, he didn't look away. There was something unnerving about the creature's presence. Something old and deep more refined than monstrous, yet wild at its core.

From the inside, a screen blinked in the void.

[System Update Complete]

User: Owen

New Form Assigned: Nargacrypta (Monster)

You have gained 3 new traits:

Glass Coil: Your body reflects and absorbs light, increasing stealth.

Reverb Skin: Physical attacks bounce, storing kinetic energy.

Echo Fang: Your bite can steal a portion of the target's last used mana.

Unique Skill Awakened: "Living Archive"

You now store and adapt abilities you observe, compressing them into evolution nodes.

Owen's mind buzzed inside the dark void his thoughts echoing in the blank space.

System…? What happened?I was in stasis… then…

His thoughts slowed as he felt his new body stretch longer, faster, colder.

And then, with a slow movement, his eyes blinked open serpent eyes, slit and glowing faintly white-blue.

"About time," Axelius muttered, squatting beside the serpent now lifting its head slowly.

Owen's tongue flicked the air once, then twice recognition forming.

Axelius frowned. "Don't look at me like that. You're the one who came out stylish."

Then he sighed, smirk returning faintly.

"…Welcome back, bud."