The Fated One…
When it was revealed that the noctifelis possessed that skill, Draco had no choice but to release it. The creature rose to its feet and hissed angrily.
However, it didn't run.
It wasn't because it lacked survival instinct…
But because…
Well, the cat was Claire.
And Claire, fully aware of what that skill truly meant, was just as dumbfounded.
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Damn…
Even Claire hadn't seen this coming.
The Fated One…
Holy shit…
Back in Arventia Online, there were actually two versions of that skill.
The first was the real deal, the original, and it was exclusive to NPC beast tamers. Players could never get their hands on it, probably because its sheer power and brutal limitations would have wrecked the game's balance.
The second was a watered-down variant. In that version, the bonded beast took up only six star slots instead of all twelve, which meant a tamer could still keep six other magical beasts. The buffs were the same in type, just cut in half.
Claire could still remember the first time she'd ever seen the original in action. Way up in the frozen north, there was a quest NPC known as the Dragon Slayer Jeffrey. He was a One-Beast Tamer, and his partner was an Epic-grade Ice Wyvern—so strong that even some dragons of the same star level couldn't beat it. With The Fated One's bonuses stacked on top, the thing was practically unstoppable.
Beating Jeffrey in a duel earned you a skill stone for the weaker version of The Fated One. That quest was the only guaranteed way to get it. Technically, you could farm another stone as a rare drop… but good luck with that. The odds were so bad, combined with the fact that the quest one was untradable, the few skill stones that did make it to the player market sold for absurd prices, easily in the top five most expensive skill stones in the entire game.
Because of that, anyone lucky enough to get it had to think long and hard before using it. Most players would save it for the strongest magical beast they'd ever own, ideally something legendary-tier.
For Claire, that skill ended up becoming one of the core abilities of her beloved Marshmallow, the legendary angelic cat.
Truly, truly powerful stuff.
Now, though… that thin, purple-eyed man had just looked straight into her stats. And if he could do it, why couldn't she? She was very curious about how strong she was too.
Thus, "Status," she muttered under her breath.
She didn't really expect anything to happen. But the moment she said the word, a glowing window of text bloomed into her vision.
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Name: Not Assigned by Master
Race: Noctifelis
Rarity: Common
Type: Darkness
Special Trait: Divine
Status: In Distress
Stats:
- Strength: 0.3 (+0.33)
- Defense: 0.4 (+0.44)
- Magic: 0.02 (+0.02)
- Speed: 0.5 (+0.6)
- Perception: 1 (+1.1)
Skills:
- The Fated One
Active Buffs:
- Silvervein's Pact
- The Fated One
Active Debuff:
- Sixfold Sacred Suppression
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Yep, that's Noctifelis for ya…
Claire sighed, her small, curved cat mouth letting out an almost cute sound.
The stats were exactly what she expected from a typical Noctifelis—pathetic across the board, with only the perception stat barely reaching one. And if that wasn't bad enough, there was also this: Sixfold Sacred Suppression.
For some unknown reason, out of all creatures in Arventia, only the Noctifelis carried this debuff. It was like a curse, or a punishment that had fallen upon their entire race.
Sixfold Sacred Suppression:
- Experience gained is reduced by 99%
- Evolution points gained is reduced by 99%
- Success rate when learning skills from skill stones is reduced by 99%
- Mana cost of all spells is increased by 10 fold.
- Damage received is increased by 10 fold
- Damage output is reduced by 90%
Yeah… the SSS Curse...
These debuffs were absolutely brutal. It's the main reason why it's so damn impossible to raise a Noctifelis. Players had long wondered what in the world the Noctifelises had done to deserve such treatment.
Perhaps their ancestor was some great evil, and now the entire species was doomed to pay the price?
Regardless, as of the latest update, nothing more had been revealed. Everything about the Noctifelis race remained shrouded in mystery.
Anyway, with stats that pathetic, it was no wonder people wanted to unsummon her.
Well… at least thanks to that skill—The Fated One—her life was now guaranteed. That crazy red-haired man wouldn't try to take her life anymore, because doing so would also mean killing his own daughter.
Still, Claire was certain… life was going to be really tough from here on out.
For her… and for her Master as well.
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As Lady Ariana released Emilia, she immediately rushed toward the Noctifelis. She scooped the small creature into her arms and held it close, tears streaming down her cheeks.
The cat seemed to recognize its master and didn't resist.
"I'm sorry… I'm sorry!" Emilia sobbed, her voice trembling. "Don't worry… I won't let anyone hurt you ever again."
She buried her face in its fur, stroking it gently yet clinging to it as if afraid it might vanish.
"Emilia…" Draco reached out a hand toward his daughter.
But then he hesitated… and slowly withdrew.
He knew that what he had just done—trying to take the Noctifelis' life—was perhaps the most hurtful thing he had ever done to her.
The others could only watch in silence as the girl broke down in front of them.
Eventually, her sobs began to fade.
"Please… Father…" Emilia whispered at last, agony still filled her voice. "I want to be alone… just for a moment…"
"…Alright," Draco nodded quietly.
And with that, the summoning ceremony came to an end. A day that should have been filled with joy, had instead ended in quiet sorrow.