The Mythic Defect

CHAPTER 4 The Beast That Should Not Kneel

The Saint-ranked beasts attacked at once. The silver war lion struck first, crossing half the arena in a single explosive leap while spirit energy tore through the shattered stone beneath its claws. Flames surged from the black serpent behind it, twisting through the air like a tidal wave of darkness, while the armoured drakes unleashed torrents of molten fire powerful enough to reduce buildings to ash.

The combined assault descended toward Drake with catastrophic force. People throughout the plaza screamed and fled in terror. Even experienced Beast Tamers looked pale beneath the overwhelming pressure generated by Grand Elder Varis’s summons. Saint-ranked creatures were weapons of war capable of destroying armies. Releasing four simultaneously inside the city borders bordered on madness.

Yet Varis showed no hesitation. His gaze remained locked on Drake and Azhareth with grim determination. To him, the destruction of part of Ashveil City was a small price to pay if it meant preventing whatever horror had awakened beneath the altar.

At the centre of the storm, Drake felt death approaching. Heat blasted against his skin. The arena floor cracked violently beneath the pressure.

His instincts screamed for him to run, but there was nowhere left to escape. The nobles wanted him erased. The Temple feared him. The moment he touched Azhareth’s head and completed the pact, his old life disappeared forever.

And somehow…That realisation no longer frightened him as much as it should have. Beside him, Azhareth slowly lifted its scarred head. The ancient beast looked exhausted. Blood continued dripping from the wounds where rusted chains pierced its flesh, and the glowing seal marks across its body pulsed erratically as though struggling to contain something immeasurably vast beneath the surface.

Yet despite its weakened condition, its golden eyes remained calm. Almost disappointed.“You are observing this too quietly,” Drake muttered internally.

Azhareth’s voice echoed inside his mind.“Because they are weak.”The Saint beasts closed in. The silver war lion roared, unleashing a shockwave that shattered nearby pillars into rubble. Several spectators who failed to escape in time were thrown violently across the plaza.

Drake’s pulse quickened.“They don’t look weak to me.”Azhareth stared at the incoming creatures for several long seconds. Then the ancient beast spoke softly.“In the age before your kingdoms existed, creatures like these guarded palace gates.”

Drake almost forgot to breathe. Before he could respond, the war lion attacked. Its enormous claw descended directly toward Drake’s head. The force behind the strike split the air apart.  Then, the lion froze. The beast’s claw stopped less than an inch from Drake’s face. Gasps exploded across the arena.

The war lion trembled violently. Not from restraint.From fear. Azhareth had not moved. The chained creature merely stared at the Saint beast with cold golden eyes, and suddenly the enormous predator looked less like a divine guardian and more like an animal standing before a natural disaster.

The war lion slowly lowered itself toward the ground. Its head bowed. The arena descended into stunned silence. One Saint beast kneeling could have been dismissed as intimidation. But now even the armoured drakes hesitated in midair. The black serpent recoiled uneasily. All of them sensed the same terrifying truth. The existence before them stood above their understanding of hierarchy itself.

Grand Elder Varis’s expression darkened further.“Impossible…” one noble whispered nearby. No spirit beast should possess absolute dominance over Saint-ranked creatures…”

Varis suddenly shouted, “Force the attack!”Spirit energy erupted from his body. The contract crests behind him ignited brightly as he strengthened his connection with the beasts through sheer willpower. The war lion growled painfully, fighting against its instincts while the drakes unleashed another torrent of flames.

This time, Azhareth finally moved. The chained beast took one slow step forward. The arena shook. A pulse of invisible pressure exploded outward from its body, and suddenly, every spirit beast within the plaza collapsed simultaneously.

Thousands of summons across the city cried out in terror. Birds fell from the sky. Stable beasts broke free from their chains and fled through the streets. Even contracted beasts belonging to nobles outside the arena began screaming uncontrollably. The pressure spread beyond the city walls. Far away in the distant mountains surrounding Ashveil, ancient creatures sleeping beneath the earth slowly opened their eyes.

Inside the plaza, the Saint beasts could no longer resist. The war lion lowered its head completely. The armoured drakes folded their wings and descended trembling to the ground. Even the black serpent flattened itself against the stone in terrified submission.

The sight shattered the crowd’s remaining composure. Chaos erupted.“That thing is controlling them!”No… no beast should possess that level of bloodline suppression!”

“Is it a Divine-ranked creature?!”Several priests backed away in visible horror. Others began praying desperately beneath their breath. Drake stood motionless while the shockwaves of fear spread throughout the arena. A strange sensation twisted inside him. For the first time in his life, people were no longer looking down on him with contempt.

Now they looked at him with fear. And somehow, that frightened him more. Azhareth suddenly staggered. The invisible pressure vanished instantly. Drake turned sharply. The creature’s breathing had become uneven, and fresh blood spilt from beneath the chains embedded throughout its body.

The earlier display of dominance had clearly drained what little strength remained inside it.“You’re falling apart,” Drake said internally. The seal is resisting my awakening,” Azhareth replied calmly. Its voice weakened further.

“Then stop using your power.” “If I stop,” the beast answered quietly, “they will kill you.”Drake clenched his jaw. Something about those words unsettled him deeply. This creature barely knew him. Yet it continued protecting him despite being moments away from collapse itself.

Before Drake could think further, another violent tremor shook the arena. But this time, the shaking did not come from Azhareth. It came from beneath the city. The ground rumbled violently enough to split nearby roads apart. People screamed as buildings throughout Ashveil trembled dangerously.

Then a horrifying sound echoed from somewhere deep underground. A roar.Ancient.Massive.Hungry.Every face in the arena changed instantly. Even Azhareth’s golden eyes narrowed slightly.“You awakened something else,” the beast murmured.

Drake frowned. “What does that mean?”Before Azhareth could answer, a terrified priest stumbled toward Grand Elder Varis.“My lord!” the man shouted desperately. “The underground seal chambers are reacting!”

Varis’s expression shifted for the first time.Fear.Not fear of Drake.Not fear of Azhareth.Fear of whatever existed beneath the city.“How many chambers?” Varis demanded. The priest looked pale.“All of them.”A heavy silence settled over the elder. Then realisation appeared in his eyes.“No…” he whispered.

Drake noticed immediately.“You know what’s down there.”Varis slowly turned toward him. For several seconds, the elder remained silent while chaos consumed the arena around them. Then he spoke grimly.“When the first kingdoms were built, humanity hunted creatures it could not control.”

Azhareth’s gaze hardened instantly. Varis continued.“Some were executed. Others were imprisoned beneath sacred grounds where future generations would never discover them.”Drake felt cold unease crawl through his chest.“This city…” he said slowly.“…was built above a prison,” Varis finished. The truth struck the arena like another explosion. The Temple priests looked horrified. The nobles turned pale.

Everything about the Day of Summoning suddenly felt insignificant compared to the revelation now unfolding before them. Ashveil had not been built for prosperity. It had been built as a seal. Another roar thundered beneath the earth. This time, cracks spread across the arena walls. Dust rained from above. Somewhere beneath the city streets, something colossal was moving.

And it was waking up because of Azhareth. Lucien Ashthorn stared at Drake from the noble platform with growing disbelief. Only hours ago, Drake had been a worthless outcast. Now the fate of the entire city revolved around him. Hatred burned behind Lucien’s silver eyes. But beneath that hatred lurked something else.Jealousy.Because deep down, Lucien understood the truth before most others did. History was changing.

And Drake stood at the centre of it. Suddenly, Lyra pushed through the collapsing crowd and reached the shattered altar.“Drake!”

Relief flashed across her face when she saw him alive, though terror quickly replaced it when her eyes landed on Azhareth. The chained beast watched her calmly. Unlike the others, however, Lyra did not immediately recoil. Instead, she stared at the wounds piercing its body.“You’re suffering,” she whispered.

Azhareth tilted its head slightly. Drake noticed the reaction immediately. The ancient beast seemed… surprised. Most humans responded to it with fear. Lyra’s first reaction had been pity. Before anyone could speak further, the sky suddenly darkened again.

A massive formation circle ignited high above Ashveil City. Golden symbols stretched across the heavens like an enormous cage. The crowd gasped in horror. Varis’s expression turned grim.“They activated the Heavenly Lock.”Drake looked upward.

“What is that?”Azhareth answered first. “A city-wide execution barrier.”Cold realisation struck Drake instantly. The barrier continued expanding across the sky until it sealed the entire city beneath glowing golden walls. Nobody could enter. Nobody could leave. Then dozens of figures appeared atop the surrounding towers overlooking the plaza. Each wore silver ceremonial armour marked with the crest of the Royal Temple. Executioners.

One of them stepped forward and raised a glowing spear toward Drake. By now, panic had completely consumed Ashveil. The Temple had chosen its answer. If the forbidden beast could not be contained, then the city itself would become its grave. And somewhere deep beneath the trembling earth…Something enormous began climbing toward the surface.