Sovereign of Forbidden Spirits

The first scream tore through Ashveil City before dawn, sharp enough to cut through the silence lingering over the sleeping streets.

Nobody reacted the way outsiders would have expected.

People did not run in panic. No one rushed toward shelter. The citizens of Ashveil had lived beside monsters for generations, and fear had slowly become part of daily life.

Somewhere beyond the eastern walls, another beast had escaped containment. Its roar rolled across the city like distant thunder, rattling windows and shaking flocks of black iron-feathered birds from the rooftops.

Moments later, warning bells echoed across the outer districts while massive blue barrier sigils ignited above the walls. Armored tamers sprinted toward the breach atop armored wolf beasts, their weapons glowing beneath the dim morning sky.

Even so, the city refused to slow down.

Today was different.

Today was the Day of Summoning.

The excitement flooding Ashveil completely overshadowed the danger outside its walls. Before sunrise had fully painted the sky gold, the streets were already overflowing with crowds.

Merchants shouted from packed corners while noble carriages rolled proudly through the upper roads under heavy guard.

Children dressed in ceremonial academy uniforms clutched silver summoning tokens tightly against their chests while parents whispered prayers beside them.

Hope and fear moved together through the city like twin shadows, because everyone understood the same brutal truth.

In the Beast Dominion, your summon determined your future. A powerful beast could raise an orphan into nobility overnight.

A weak beast could condemn an entire family to another generation of poverty. Nothing else mattered: not talent, not kindness, not hard work. Only strength earns respect in this world.

Jesse Fletcher walked through the crowded streets alone.

His academy coat hung loosely over his lean frame, faded from years of wear and carefully stitched together wherever the fabric had torn. One sleeve had been repaired so many times that the seams looked like scars wrapping around his wrist. People noticed him immediately. They always did.

A wealthy woman walking beside her son pulled the child slightly closer when Jesse passed nearby. “Stay close to me,” she whispered under her breath.

The boy frowned in confusion. “Why?”

“That district breeds thieves,” she replied quietly.

Jesse heard every word. He kept walking anyway. Years ago, insults like that used to make his blood boil. Now they have only exhausted him. The world had spent too many years reminding him where he belonged.

A group of academy students standing near a fountain recognized him moments later. “Well, look who crawled out of Blackwater,” one of them said loudly.

Another laughed. “The slum orphan actually came?”

“Gods,” a third boy muttered, looking Jesse up and down. “This is going to be humiliating.” One student grinned cruelly before adding, “What’s he hoping to summon? A sewer rat?”

The group burst into laughter. Jesse’s jaw tightened slightly, but he never slowed his pace. He stared straight ahead and continued toward the towering structures at the center of the city. Then the Summoning Plaza came into view. Even Jesse, despite everything weighing on his mind, felt his breath catch slightly.

The plaza looked divine.

Massive floating crystal platforms hovered high above the city like fragments of heaven itself. Golden streams of spiritual light cascaded down from enormous pillars positioned around the arena, while thousands of spectators packed the marble balconies surrounding the central stage. At the center of everything stood the Summoning Obelisk.

The colossal black monument towered over the entire plaza, covered in glowing ancient runes that pulsed faintly beneath the morning light. The sheer pressure radiating from it made Jesse’s skin prickle from across the arena. It did not feel like an object; it felt alive.

Long lines of students stretched across the lower platform, waiting for their turn to awaken a spirit beast. Nobles naturally occupied the front while students from poorer districts stood near the rear. Nobody questioned the arrangement.

The system had existed for centuries, and people accepted it the same way they accepted gravity or death.

A nervous-looking boy standing nearby glanced toward Jesse. “You from Blackwater too?” he asked carefully.

Jesse nodded once. The boy swallowed hard before speaking again. “I heard nobody from our district has awakened above D-rank in twelve years.”

“That sounds about right,” Jesse answered quietly. The boy forced out a weak laugh, though it carried more anxiety than humor.

“My mother sold half our furniture so I could attend the academy,” he admitted. “If I awaken something useless…” His voice trailed off.

Jesse looked at him for a moment before asking, “What are you hoping for?”

The boy hesitated before giving an honest answer. “Anything strong enough to keep my little sisters fed.”

That answer hit Jesse harder than he expected. Because poor people rarely dreamed about greatness first, they dreamed about survival. A massive ceremonial bell suddenly rang across the plaza, instantly silencing the crowd.

An elderly man wearing silver ceremonial robes stepped onto the central platform while spirit amplifiers carried his voice throughout the city. “Citizens of Ashveil,” he announced grandly, “welcome to the sacred Day of Summoning.”

Thunderous applause erupted from every direction. The old man raised both hands toward the sky as golden light intensified around the spirit pillars. “Today, the heavens shall determine your path,” he declared. “The beasts you awaken will shape your future, your honor, and your place within the Dominion.”

The crowd roared louder. Jesse remained silent. The elder continued speaking, his voice echoing with absolute authority.

“Those blessed with powerful contracts shall rise toward greatness. Those lacking strength must accept the will of fate.”

A noble standing nearby smirked proudly at those words, while several poorer students lowered their heads slightly.

Jesse hated how normal the inequality looked.

The ceremony began shortly afterward. One by one, students stepped forward and placed their hands against the Summoning Obelisk. Each awakening transformed the atmosphere of the plaza.

The first major summon came from a noble heir named Cedric Vael.

The instant his palm touched the Obelisk, flames erupted upward in a violent spiral. Heat exploded across the platform while shocked gasps spread through the audience.

A gigantic crimson lion emerged from the inferno, its molten mane blazing like living magma.

“Inferno Lion!”

“That’s a B-rank beast!”

“The Vael bloodline truly is monstrous!” Cedric grinned proudly while the beast roared beside him. He intentionally glanced toward the poorer districts as applause thundered around the plaza.

Jesse looked away.

Another noble summoned a massive Storm Serpent wrapped in crackling lightning. Another awakened a Frost Griffin whose wings blanketed the platform in ice.

Every powerful summon widened the invisible divide between the rich and the poor. Every cheer sounded like another reminder that you were born beneath them.

Then the atmosphere shifted completely. A whisper spread through the crowd like wildfire. “She’s here.”

“The Valerion heiress…”

Elysia Valerion stepped onto the platform, and even Jesse immediately understood why people feared her.

She moved with calm elegance, silver-white hair flowing behind her while the crest of the Valerion Clan shimmered across her uniform collar. Nobles straightened instinctively when she passed. Even the academy officials looked nervous around her.

The academy examiner bowed his head slightly. “Lady Elysia,” he said respectfully.

Elysia gave a calm nod before placing her hand against the Obelisk. For one brief second, nothing happened.

Then the heavens exploded. Silver-blue light erupted violently across the plaza, forcing several spectators to stumble backward. A freezing wind swept through the arena while enormous wings unfolded within the storm overhead.

A phoenix descended from the sky. The creature looked breathtaking and terrifying at the same time. Its feathers glowed like moonlight over fresh snow, while icy flames spiraled around its enormous body.

The crowd completely lost control. “A Celestial Frost Phoenix?!”

“That’s impossible!”

“An A-rank summon!”

“No… maybe even higher!” The phoenix landed gracefully behind Elysia before lowering its massive head toward her.

Elysia simply stroked its neck calmly, as though awakening legendary creatures was completely ordinary for someone like her.

Jesse watched quietly from the back of the crowd, not because she was beautiful, but because nobody looked at her with pity. Power protected people in ways kindness never could.

A sharp voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts. “Well… if it isn’t the Blackwater stray.” Jesse turned slowly.

Kael Draven approached alongside three noble students dressed in expensive academy uniforms threaded with silver embroidery.

Kael’s eyes traveled down Jesse’s worn coat with obvious disgust. “You actually showed up dressed like that?” Kael asked mockingly.

One of the boys beside him laughed immediately. “I’ve seen servants wearing better clothes.”

Another smirked. “Maybe the slums finally ran out of fabric.”

The group burst into laughter. Jesse remained silent.

Kael stepped closer until they stood only a few feet apart. “You know,” Kael said casually, “people like you shouldn’t even stand on the same platform as us. “

Nearby students immediately turned to watch the confrontation. Some looked amused, others looked uncomfortable.

Kael smirked when Jesse didn’t respond right away. “What’s wrong?” he asked. “Too scared to speak?”

Jesse slowly lifted his eyes toward him. “Maybe,” he answered evenly. “But I still showed up.”

The smile on Kael’s face faded slightly. For a brief moment, tension settled heavily between them.

Kael leaned closer, lowering his voice. “Careful,” he murmured coldly. “Confidence looks disgusting on poor people.”

Jesse’s hands clenched tightly at his sides, not from fear, but from restraint.

Eventually, Kael scoffed and stepped away. “Enjoy your humiliation,” he said before walking off laughing with the others, but their words lingered long after they disappeared. They always did.

Jesse stared quietly at his scarred hands while an old memory surfaced inside his mind.

His mother’s voice sounded soft and warm in the darkness of his memory. “Strength isn’t what makes people monsters, Jesse… fear is“.

He remembered holding her hand while she lay dying; he remembered being too weak to save her.

Too weak to stop anything, that helplessness still lived inside him like a wound that had never healed properly. That was why he stood here now, not for glory, not for fame, but for freedom.

Hours passed as the line steadily shortened. More beasts emerged. More cheers erupted. More futures were decided until finally.

“Jesse Fletcher.” The atmosphere shifted immediately. Whispers spread across the crowd almost instantly.

“That’s the orphan.”

“The Blackwater kid?”

“I heard he nearly failed the academy entrance trials.”

“Why even bother coming?”

Jesse ignored them and walked forward, every step toward the Summoning Obelisk felt heavier than the last.

The academy examiner adjusted his glasses awkwardly when Jesse stopped before him. Unlike the others, the man looked genuinely sympathetic. “You may begin,” he said quietly.

Jesse nodded once before placing his hand against the Obelisk. The world instantly went dark. Not dim, not shadowed. Absolute darkness swallowed the entire plaza.

The golden pillars vanished. The floating platforms disappeared. Horrified screams erupted from the crowd as panic spread through the arena. “What happened?!”

“The spirit lights are gone!”

“That’s impossible!“

Then came the cracking sound. A deep black fracture spread across the surface of the Obelisk like corruption infecting stone.

Another crack followed. Then another. The entire monument began splitting apart. The ground trembled violently beneath the city while several summoned beasts collapsed instantly. Others roared uncontrollably in panic.

Even Elysia’s Frost Phoenix spread its wings defensively. For the first time that day, true fear swept through the plaza.

Jesse could not move. Something was staring at him from inside the darkness. Something ancient Something alive Then a horrifying pulse exploded outward.

The force hurled Jesse backward across the platform. Light returned instantly. The shaking stopped. An unnatural silence settled over the entire plaza.

Jesse blinked hard, struggling to steady his breathing. Something rested weakly in his arms. The creature was small, cold, and barely breathing. Black scales covered its fragile body while shattered golden chains wrapped around its limbs and neck like broken restraints. One glowing golden eye slowly opened. Then it locked onto Jesse.

The entire plaza stared in frozen horror. Nobody moved. Nobody even breathed.

Then a woman near the front pointed toward the creature with trembling hands and screamed.

“THAT THING IS A DEFECT!”