I Built a Divine Zoo in Another World

Without saying another word, Clavor headed toward another wing of the mansion, his footsteps gradually fading into the distance.

Lukas entered through the main hallway, his footsteps echoing through the silence. His four companions followed him naturally, as they always did.

Astra landed on one of the railings for a few seconds before taking flight again, her white wings gleaming in the dim light.

Tilbo walked calmly behind him, his massive body moving with surprising grace.

Prata glided silently along the walls, her legs moving with the fluidity of a shadow. Rourke darted back and forth, as he always did, his energy seemingly inexhaustible.

As he climbed the staircase, Lukas felt the weight of the day finally catch up to him. The adrenaline of his achievement began to fade, replaced by exhaustion like a slowly advancing tide.

When he entered his room, he let out a long sigh, his shoulders relaxing.

"Finally..."

He closed the door behind him, the sound of the latch echoing through the silence.

The first thing he did was carefully lean his wooden sword against the side of the bed, his fingers releasing the familiar hilt. Then he walked toward the bathroom, his steps slow and heavy.

He turned the faucet, and warm water began to flow, steam rising in gentle spirals. Lukas stepped beneath the shower and closed his eyes, letting the warmth embrace him like a hug.

The tension that had built up over the last five days seemed to melt away little by little, washing off with the water. He remained there for several minutes, simply feeling, simply existing.

As the water ran over his body, he recalled everything that had happened that week. The first night, when he had to gather his first particles of mana, the intense cold invading his chest, the tiny moon no larger than a grain of sand that had appeared within his heart.

Then came the connections. First the left leg, the strange sensation of mana flowing through new pathways. Then the right, the process becoming more natural. The arms, are more delicate, demanding absolute precision. And finally, the head, the most dangerous connection, the one that required all of his concentration and control.

He smiled to himself, the steam surrounding his face. If someone had told him only a few days earlier that he would accomplish all of that in just five nights... he probably wouldn’t have believed it.

He finished his shower feeling refreshed. He put on a light shirt and quickly dried his white hair with a towel, though the unruly strands stubbornly refused to stay in place.

When he returned to the bedroom, he found his four companions already occupying their usual spots. Astra was perched atop the wardrobe, her golden eyes shining in the dimness.

Tilbo had settled near the wall, his enormous form filling its familiar space. Prata remained motionless within her newly rebuilt web, its silvery threads gleaming beneath the moonlight.

Lukas smiled at them, a smile filled with gratitude.

"Good night, Astra..."

The little eagle answered with a soft chirp, a sound of recognition.

"Good night, Tilbo..."

The ant slowly moved its antennae, a gesture Lukas had already learned to interpret as a greeting.

"Good night, Prata..." The spider merely adjusted the position of her legs, remaining silent, but her presence was comforting.

Then his eyes searched for his last companion. Rourke. The little rat wasn’t near the bed, nor by the small shelter Lukas had prepared for him.

Lukas frowned slightly, a wrinkle of concern appearing on his forehead.

That was when he found him.

Near the window. Completely motionless. His little snout pointed toward the night sky, as though he were contemplating the stars. His tiny body looked like a statue, so still that Lukas almost thought he had fallen asleep standing up.

But what truly caught his attention was the golden stripe running across Rourke’s head.

It was glowing, far brighter than usual. It wasn’t merely a reflection of the moon, nor a trick of the light. It seemed to emit its own radiance, a soft, pulsing glow that came from within the little rat’s body.

Faint. Gentle. Yet unmistakably visible.

Lukas slowly approached, his footsteps cautious.

"Rourke...?"

The rat continued staring outside for several seconds, as though listening to something only he could hear. Only then did he turn his head, his tiny eyes meeting Lukas’s violet ones.

Then, without the slightest hesitation, he ran straight toward him. With a single leap, he jumped onto the bed, his little paws gripping the fabric. Another leap, and he was already on the mattress, his tiny body warm.

Lukas smiled, relief flooding his chest. He sat down slowly, his movements gentle.

Rourke walked over to his arm and gently rubbed his head against Lukas’s hand, a gesture of affection that Lukas had already learned to recognize. The golden stripe continued to shine, brighter than ever, like a tiny flame atop his head.

Lukas carefully ran a finger over it, feeling its texture. The stripe felt exactly like the rest of his fur, soft, smooth, with no tactile difference whatsoever. No raised surface, no strange feature, nothing to suggest its unusual nature.

Even so, there was something entirely different about it, an energy he could barely perceive.

It remained a mystery that even the books he had found in Hark Castle’s library had failed to explain.

He sighed softly, gently stroking the little rat’s head.

"One day I’ll find out what you really are..."

Rourke seemed to answer simply by slowly closing his eyes, his tiny eyelids falling like curtains. Then he walked over to the pillow, his small body moving with surprising grace. He curled himself into a little ball, his tail wrapping around his body.

And only moments later, he fell into a deep sleep, his breathing becoming steady and gentle.

Lukas watched his companion for several seconds, his eyes roaming over the tiny body. He smiled, a smile of pure affection.

Without realizing it, he pulled the little rat a little closer to himself before lying down as well, his body sinking into the soft mattress.

It was at that exact moment, the instant Rourke drifted completely into sleep, that something changed.

Lukas felt a gentle warmth emerge within his chest, a different kind of warmth that did not come from the Lunar Spring.

It wasn’t the familiar warmth of mana flowing through his channels, nor the cool sensation that accompanied the movement of energy. It was an entirely different energy, gentle and comforting, seemingly arising from some invisible place between him and the sleeping little rat.

He frowned in confusion.

"What...?"

Before he could understand what was happening, a piece of information naturally surfaced in his mind, as though it had always been there, waiting to be discovered.

The affinity that had remained stuck at ninety-four percent for days suddenly rose to ninety-five percent.

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