Sovereign of Forbidden Spirits

CHAPTER 3 — THE MARK OF SHAME

By sunrise, the entire city knew Jesse Fletcher as the boy who bonded with the cursed defect.

The rumors spread faster than wildfire.

Servants whispered about him in noble estates before breakfast. Merchants repeated distorted versions of the story in crowded marketplaces. Even the outer districts buzzed with fear after witnesses described the golden chains that had torn across the heavens during the pact ceremony.

Some claimed Jesse had summoned a demon. Others believed he had awakened a forgotten calamity buried beneath Ashveil itself.

By morning, one detail remained consistent in every version of the story: The slum orphan had become a disaster.

Jesse realized that the moment he stepped outside his apartment building, a rotten fruit struck the wall beside his head and exploded into pulp.

“Monster lover!” Another piece of trash flew from across the alley.

“You should’ve let the priests kill it!” People standing near the market stalls backed away immediately when they saw the small black creature walking weakly behind him. Mothers pulled their children aside while merchants hurriedly closed shop windows as though Jesse carried a plague.

Noxaris stopped moving. Its golden eye lowered toward the ground. The broken chains wrapped around its body rattled softly as it trembled.

Jesse clenched his jaw. “Keep walking,” he muttered quietly. The creature obeyed instantly despite barely having enough strength to stand. That somehow made everything worse, because monsters were not supposed to look helpless.

Blackwater District had always been cruel, but this felt different. Fear had poisoned the city overnight. Even people who once ignored Jesse now looked at him with open hostility.

An old man standing near a food cart spat onto the street. “The Council should’ve executed both of them.”

A woman nearby nodded immediately. “That thing brought disaster to the plaza.”

Jesse kept walking, but their words followed him through every street, every alley, every stare. By the time he reached the academy gates, exhaustion already weighed heavily across his shoulders.

Unfortunately, the academy proved even worse. The moment Jesse stepped onto campus grounds, conversations died around him. Students turned immediately.

Whispers spread. “That’s him.”

“The defect tamer.”

“I heard divine beasts scream because of his summon.”

“No… I heard people died during the summoning.”

“That thing shouldn’t exist.” Jesse ignored them and continued toward the central courtyard while Noxaris limped quietly beside him.

The creature looked worse in daylight. Its black scales appeared cracked near the shoulders, and the shattered chains embedded in its flesh glowed faintly whenever it moved too quickly. Several students visibly recoiled when they noticed dark blood dripping slowly from beneath the restraints. Then someone laughed.

Kael Draven stepped forward from a nearby staircase surrounded by several noble students. “Well,” Kael announced loudly, “the cursed trash finally arrived.”

The surrounding students immediately gathered closer. looked nervous. Others looked entertained. Kael circled Jesse slowly while examining Noxaris with exaggerated disgust.

“That’s the legendary beast that terrified the entire plaza?” he mocked. “It looks like it’ll die if someone sneezes too hard.” Laughter erupted nearby. One student covered his nose dramatically. “Gods, is that thing rotting?” Another smirked. “Maybe defects smell different.”

Noxaris lowered its head further.

Jesse noticed the reaction immediately.

His chest tightened unexpectedly. “Leave it alone,” he said coldly.

Kael raised an eyebrow. “Or what?”

Jesse stayed silent, not because he feared Kael, but because he honestly didn’t know the answer. That realization burned deeper than the insults.

Kael noticed the hesitation instantly and grinned wider. “That’s what I thought.” Before Jesse could respond, the academy bells rang sharply across the courtyard. Students immediately began moving toward the Assembly Hall.

Kael smirked one final time before stepping away.“Come on,” he said to the others. “Let’s go see how the academy plans to bury him.” The laughter continued long after they disappeared.

Noxaris suddenly stumbled. The creature nearly collapsed before Jesse caught it by the shoulder. Its breathing sounded rough again. “You’re pushing too hard,” Jesse muttered.

Noxaris looked up weakly. For a brief moment, Jesse felt something brush against his thoughts. Emotion Apology: The sensation vanished almost instantly.

Jesse froze. “What was that?” Noxaris blinked slowly but gave no response. The Assembly Hall overflowed with tension. Thousands of students filled the enormous chamber while academy officials stood above them on elevated platforms surrounded by spirit banners.

The moment Jesse entered with Noxaris beside him, silence spread across the room. Several students physically moved away from him. Others stared openly. At the center platform stood Headmaster Alric Dane, a stern older man whose face carried visible exhaustion this morning. Beside him stood the High Priest.

The atmosphere immediately darkened when Jesse noticed him. The priest’s eyes locked onto Noxaris with undisguised hatred.

“Due to yesterday’s events,” the Headmaster began heavily, “the academy has conducted an emergency reassessment of beast classifications.” Murmurs spread across the hall. The High Priest stepped forward.

“Certain summons,” he declared sharply, “represent threats to the balance established by the divine beast laws.” His gaze shifted directly toward Jesse.

“Such creatures cannot be allowed influence or authority.” Jesse felt every eye in the room turn toward him again. The Headmaster sighed before continuing.

“After careful evaluation, Jesse Fletcher’s contracted beast has been classified…” He hesitated briefly.

“…as Defective Rank.” The hall exploded into whispers. Students looked stunned.

One boy raised his hand nervously. “Sir… there’s no such rank.”

“There is now,” the High Priest answered coldly.

Kael burst into laughter somewhere near the front. “Even the academy thinks he’s garbage!” More students joined in Defective Rank, Lower than F-rank, Lower than failure itself.

Jesse stood motionless while the humiliation crashed into him from every direction. Something inside him quietly cracked. Maybe they were right. Maybe this really was hopeless. Maybe no matter how hard he fought, the world would never allow someone like him to rise.

Noxaris weakly pressed against his leg The small gesture interrupted the spiral forming inside his head The creature looked up at him carefully Trusting him completely Even now Even after everything.

Jesse swallowed slowly. Why?

Why trust someone equally broken? Classes ended early due to continued investigations surrounding the summoning incident. Most students hurried away from Jesse whenever possible. Only one person approached him willingly.

Elysia Valerion. The courtyard became noticeably quieter the moment she walked toward him.

Even Kael stopped talking.

Elysia’s icy blue eyes studied Noxaris carefully while the Frost Phoenix stood silently behind her. Surprisingly, the divine beast did not appear hostile. Cautious, yes, but not aggressive.

“That creature is weaker than I expected,” Elysia said calmly. Jesse frowned slightly. “You sound disappointed.”

“I sound curious.”Her gaze shifted toward the broken chains embedded in Noxaris’s body.

“The fear yesterday didn’t come from strength alone,” she continued quietly. “It felt older than that.”

Jesse stiffened slightly. “You think it’s dangerous too?”

Elysia remained silent for several seconds before answering, “I think the world fears things it cannot control.” That answer caught him off guard.

Before Jesse could reply, Noxaris suddenly lost balance again. The creature collapsed onto the stone pavement with a painful sound.

Jesse immediately crouched beside it. “Noxaris!” The name left his mouth instinctively. The creature slowly lifted its golden eye toward him.

“Noxaris?” Elysia repeated. Jesse nodded quietly. “It needed a name.” Something unreadable flickered briefly across Elysia’s expression. Then she turned away.

“Be careful, Jesse Fletcher,” she said softly before leaving. “The academy fears your beast.” She paused briefly.

“And fearful people become dangerous.” Jesse watched her disappear into the upper halls before lowering his attention back toward Noxaris. The creature stared at him quietly.

“You chose me even when you could’ve died,” Jesse murmured. For a moment, nothing happened.

Then, suddenly, a voice echoed faintly inside his mind.

“…you were the only one who reached out.” Jesse froze completely. His eyes widened.

“Noxaris?” The creature looked equally startled, as though it had not intended to speak. Then the connection vanished. Jesse’s pulse quickened violently.

Telepathy. Only high-level beast contracts developed mental resonance, yet Noxaris barely looked alive.

What exactly had he bonded with?

That evening, Jesse wandered toward the abandoned lower training grounds behind the academy walls. Few students ever used the area because damaged spirit arenas filled the region after years of failed combat exercises.

Noxaris followed closely behind him despite stumbling constantly. The sun had nearly disappeared when distant shouting echoed across the training fields. Two older students were battling nearby using combat beasts.

A Steelhorn Boar crashed violently against a barrier while a Razorwing Hawk attacked from above. Spirit energy exploded repeatedly across the arena. Then, one beast finally lost.

The defeated boar vanished into scattered fragments of fading blue energy. Something strange happened immediately afterward Noxaris lifted its head sharply. The creature’s golden eye narrowed. Then the fading spirit fragments drifting through the air suddenly changed direction toward Noxaris.

Jesse stared in shock as the energy flowed directly into the broken chains wrapped around the creature’s body. The chains glowed faintly, and for the first time since yesterday…Noxaris stood without trembling.

Jesse’s breathing slowed. “You absorbed it…”

Noxaris looked toward him silently. The realization sent unease crawling down Jesse’s spine. Beasts were not supposed to consume leftover evolution energy from other summons. That ability did not exist in any known classification, which meant one terrifying possibility: Defective Rank was not a real category.

The academy simply had no idea what Noxaris actually was.

Night eventually settled over Ashveil.

Jesse returned to his tiny apartment exhausted, his mind still spinning from everything that had happened. Rain tapped softly against the windows while distant thunder echoed somewhere beyond the city walls.

Noxaris rested quietly near the corner of the room. For several minutes, neither of them spoke. Then suddenly.

“Noxaris?” Jesse asked quietly. “What are you?” The creature remained motionless.

Jesse sighed and leaned back against the wall. “I’m starting to think everyone’s right to fear you.” Silence filled the room again

Then, without warning, the golden eye slowly opened inside the darkness, and a weak voice whispered inside Jesse’s mind. “They sealed me…”

Jesse’s body stiffened. The chains around Noxaris faintly rattled.

“…because they feared what I would become.”