The Eclipsed Order

Chapter 113: Chapter 113: My New Familiar Is a Walking Calamity

A few days later, we finally returned to the academy.

Well, aside from discovering a creature that could potentially become a walking catastrophe.

I suppose that was still manageable.

Once we arrived, I spent the rest of the morning settling back into my usual routine. Classes would resume soon, which meant that my peaceful days of doing whatever I wanted were officially over.

Draven, however, seemed considerably less enthusiastic about that fact.

"Master."

"Hmm?"

"Why do you even bother studying?"

I looked toward him.

Draven was walking beside me with his usual dissatisfied expression, while Cedric followed quietly behind us. Astra was currently resting comfortably on my shoulder, occasionally moving the tails around whenever something caught the little fox’s attention.

Draven continued.

"You already possess wealth and power far beyond what most people could ever hope to obtain. If I were in your position, I would forget about studying entirely and spend my time travelling, eating good food, and enjoying life."

I raised an eyebrow.

"That’s your plan?"

"Naturally."

He sounded completely serious.

"I see no reason to make life more complicated than necessary."

I sighed.

"You do have a point, but unfortunately, I’m still a noble. Attending the academy is simply part of my responsibilities."

"Responsibilities."

Draven repeated the word with obvious skepticism.

"If you weren’t a noble, what would you do?"

I thought about it.

"Probably travel."

Draven immediately smiled.

"I knew it."

"I’d visit different countries, explore dungeons, look for interesting places, and perhaps spend a few years doing whatever I wanted."

"That sounds much more reasonable."

"But since that’s not my current situation, I’ll have to continue attending classes."

Draven sighed.

"Such a waste."

I ignored him.

"Besides, studying isn’t completely useless."

"I suppose."

He looked toward me.

"But I still don’t understand why humans spend so many years learning things they could simply experience themselves."

"Because not everyone can afford to learn everything through experience."

Draven remained silent for a moment.

"That’s surprisingly reasonable."

Cedric, who had been listening quietly, gave the faintest hint of a smile.

Draven noticed.

"You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?"

Cedric shook his head.

"I am merely listening."

"That’s exactly what someone enjoying it would say."

I decided to change the subject before the two of them started arguing again.

"By the way, when are we going to visit the Starlight?"

Draven’s expression immediately became more interested.

"I was wondering the same thing."

"We’ve barely been back in the academy for a few hours."

"And already I miss the food."

I sighed.

"Alright, we’ll go there for dinner."

"Excellent decision."

Draven nodded with satisfaction.

"I knew returning to the academy wouldn’t be entirely unpleasant."

"Your priorities are strange."

Before I could respond, a familiar sound came from my shoulder.

"Kyuu..."

I looked down.

"What is it, Astra?"

The little fox stared at me for a moment before shifting closer and rubbing its head against my cheek.

"Are you hungry?"

Astra shook the head.

I blinked.

"No?"

"Kyuu."

Astra then pushed the head against my hand.

Cedric looked at the little fox.

"I believe Astra wants you to pat the head."

"Oh."

I understood.

"So that’s what you wanted."

I gently stroked Astra’s head.

Astra immediately closed the eyes and settled down comfortably.

Draven watched the scene for a while.

"The more I look at Astra, the more difficult it becomes to believe what we’re dealing with."

"What do you mean?"

"That creature looks completely harmless."

He stared at the fifteen tails.

"Yet Astra is a Celestial Fox with fifteen tails. Not only is that species almost unheard of, but every one of those tails possesses a different power."

"Yeah."

I continued walking.

"After examining Astra’s magic, I’ve become even more convinced that each tail is connected to a different high-level power."

Draven nodded.

"That’s what worries me."

"I checked several of the attributes more carefully."

I glanced toward Astra.

"The power contained within some of the tails resembles the characteristics of calamity-class creatures."

Draven’s expression became serious.

"So far, I’ve identified similarities to creatures such as the Phoenix, Leviathan, Behemoth, and World Serpent."

I paused.

"And there are several others that I haven’t completely identified yet."

Cedric finally looked toward Astra.

"Then the power inside Astra is considerably greater than we initially assumed."

"Exactly."

Draven released a quiet breath.

"That is precisely why I’m concerned."

He looked at Astra again.

"If even one of those powers were to awaken completely..."

"You’re exaggerating."

Draven gave me a serious look.

"I’m not."

His tone was unusually firm.

"We already witnessed what happened two days ago."

I smiled faintly.

"That’s true."

Two days before returning to the academy, we had spent the night near the eastern forest.

It had been peaceful at first.

Astra had been wandering around the clearing while I watched from nearby, mostly curious about whether the little fox could actually control any of those strange powers yet.

Apparently, the answer had been yes.

Although Astra had only recently been born, one of the tails had reacted when a group of monsters approached the area.

I still remembered what happened.

The moment Astra became frightened, the atmosphere changed.

The magic surrounding the little fox had suddenly become so dense that the air itself seemed to tremble.

The ground cracked beneath Astra’s feet.

Then one of the tails released its power.

There wasn’t a complicated spell.

There wasn’t even a visible attack.

The surrounding forest simply began to collapse.

Trees were uprooted as though they weighed nothing, the ground split apart, and a wave of magical energy swept across the area with enough force to erase everything in its path.

Fortunately, Astra lost control almost immediately.

The power disappeared before the entire forest could be destroyed.

Even so, the damage left behind was enough to make me realize something important.

Astra didn’t need to understand the power yet.

The power itself already existed.

And if something managed to awaken all fifteen tails simultaneously...

I didn’t even want to imagine it.

Draven crossed his arms.

"That was only one tail."

I gently patted Astra again.

"Despite all that power, Astra doesn’t seem interested in causing destruction. The little fox is surprisingly obedient."

Draven nodded.

"Let’s hope that remains the case."

After a moment, Cedric spoke.

"Master, there is something I wanted to ask."

"What is it?"

"Can Astra transform into a human?"

I looked toward the little fox.

"I don’t know."

Draven immediately answered.

"With a being of that level, human transformation should not be particularly difficult."

He thought for a moment.

"At least, once Astra’s power matures."

"That’s what I thought."

I looked at Astra’s small body.

"Most high-ranking spirit beasts and divine creatures possess some method of transformation. For a god like being like Astra, learning it should eventually be possible."

Draven nodded.

"And once Astra transforms, we may finally understand what kind of existence we’re dealing with."

"Perhaps."

I glanced at the little fox.

"But Astra was only born a few days ago. It would be unreasonable to expect something like that already."

"Then perhaps we’ll find out later."

"Probably."

I looked at Astra for another moment.

There was something about the little fox’s appearance that had been bothering me.

The face was delicate, the eyes were large, and the overall appearance was much more graceful than I had expected from a creature possessing such ridiculous power.

I tilted my head.

"Although..."

Draven looked toward me.

"What?"

"Judging by Astra’s appearance, I wonder if Astra is female."

Draven considered it for a moment.

"I had the same impression."

Cedric looked at Astra.

"I have also wondered about that."

I nodded.

"Then perhaps we’ll know for certain once Astra learns human transformation."

Astra opened the eyes and looked at the three of us.

"Kyuu."

I smiled.

"For now, just stay like this."

Astra immediately curled up against my shoulder again.

Draven sighed.

"It’s difficult to believe that something so cute is capable of destroying an entire forest."

"I know."

I gently stroked Astra’s head.

"That’s probably what makes this situation even more dangerous."

A creature that looked harmless was carrying enough power to become a calamity.

And the strangest part was that none of us knew why such a creature had appeared in the first place.

For now, however, there was nothing I could do about that.

I had already formed a contract with Astra, and as long as the little fox remained obedient, there was no reason to worry.

At least, that’s what I told myself.

The academy gates soon appeared ahead.

I looked toward the familiar buildings.

"Well, we’re here."

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