’’Damn it!’’ Joe screamed in tension while fleeing ahead, even faster than his beast.
Cuthbert gritted his teeth and turned his attention to their beasts, yelling a warning.
’’Hurry up!’’
...
’’We’re just a few buildings away from the professor officer.’’
They dashed around the corner and ran at full speed across the hallway.
Slam!
All of them were startled for a moment when they heard the slamming sound, yet it wasn’t enough to stop them. They kept running ahead without looking back.
Matt shook his head to shake the rubble off himself after slamming into a hallway pillar, crushing half the building’s structure. He frowned at his immense size. It was really bothersome. But because he had always survived in the black zone, where most beings were immense, he had to keep his gigantic form.
But now, his new prey was tiny to him. Still, that wasn’t a problem.
He must adapt.
With a thought, his body shifted into a new form... flexible and smaller for this narrow space.
All his muscular fibers quickly shrank—not completely—but the focus on his thighs increased with a huge amount of muscle.
Not really like a black panther or any animal.
He sprang forward and ran.
His shadow flashed nonstop in the hallway. With each passing second, he quickly narrowed the gap between him and his prey.
At the last moment, when the gap was only three meters, two beastly claws swiftly emerged from his back, spreading out and enlarging to grab the two beasts.
Soon, they were already neatly pinned in Matt’s claws, writhing violently in desperation.
’’Fucking bastard! Free my beast!’’ Joe’s eyes were bloodshot as he lunged at Matt. Yet out of nowhere, a massive blade shot toward him like a deadly arrow, blocking his path and forcing him to flinch.
He fell backward while witnessing the monstrous cat toss their beasts into its horrible maw.
The monstrous cat giggled as it deliberately chewed them slowly, ignoring the deafening screams of its prey. At the same time, it gave Joe and Cuthbert an amused gaze.
Joe and Cuthbert froze as they watched their beasts being viciously devoured.
Finally, after three minutes, the deafening shrill cry began to fade when the beast could no longer endure the pain, even though Matt had been chewing it slowly the whole time.
They witnessed every single moment... until Matt’s gullet rose and fell for the last time.
Joe and Cuthbert suddenly felt a hot stirring in their stomachs. They staggered, then spewed out a mushy pile of half-digested food.
The monstrous cat shrank down, returning to a black cat, then jumped onto Rocky’s head.
’’What a performance. Now I truly understand why the system calls you the Tyrant Cat.’’
Rocky nodded and clapped.
Joe’s face twisted in rage as he glared at Rocky. He yelled,
"Don’t get happy too soon, asshole. Don’t forget we still have your sister. My new beast will level up very fast."
"We’re gonna squeeze every last bit of her lifespan out of her until she’s nothing but an empty old shell."
Cuthbert held his head in pain, trying to control himself. He roared,
"That’s right. Once we find your little sister, her fate will belong to the Whorehouse. Don’t think we accepted your big sister’s deal. Weakness doesn’t deserve to make deals."
He sneered weakly.
"Ask yourself why you’re still able to live here in peace? Because you’re nothing but a useless insect to the Branch Clan. We’ve always kept an eye on you, making sure you stay in your inferior place. But after everything you did, we’ll report this to the Branch Clan... You’re done."
Rocky’s eyes gleamed darkly as his murderous intent leaked out. Yet a sound quickly cut off his thoughts.
The professors’ footsteps. They were coming this way. It seemed the beasts’ yelling had been too loud for the rest of the academy to ignore.
"What happened here?!" a professor shouted tensely as he ran over.
Another professor scowled at the sight of the beasts’ shattered remains scattered everywhere. Even the hallway was nearly mangled.
Cuthbert’s face twisted with delight as he pointed at Rocky, yelling with feigned grievance.
"He’s violated the academy’s rules... he killed our beast!"
(Hahahahaha. Once you get expelled, the young lord is going to kill you. Next time, you’ll suffer something even worse than what you did to us... we’re gonna make you eat your own beast.)
The professors frowned and glanced around. Indeed, the undeniable evidence was laid out right before their eyes.
"Student Rocky, please follow us to the hall of academy."
***
In the vast hall of the academy, rows of long benches stretched across the room.
Before long, the hall was nearly filled with professors and those who held high positions in the academy.
The principal, Tad Fisher, sat in the largest row at the center of the hall. He kept a firm expression while nodding to his assistant, Misty.
She adjusted her glasses and gave a small nod in understanding.
"Please, bring the students in."
Rocky, Joe, Cuthbert, and Shawn strode into the hall.
Rocky glanced at Shawn, who had fully recovered. It seemed the healer had already treated him.
Joe dropped to his knees, sobbing with fake grievance.
"P-Please, you must seek justice for us. Our beasts were riped apart by his beast."
The principal rubbed his goatee in confusion.
"Really? From what I see, his beast doesn’t look like it could do such a thing."
Shawn shouted with tearful eyes, pointing at Rocky’s cat.
"Don’t be fooled by that beast’s sweet appearance. That thing is a monstrous devil cat!"
Most of the professors frowned. They clearly doubted Shawn’s words when they looked at the cat.
Some professors who had witnessed the scene spoke up.
"His words are true, Principal. We saw it ourselves... it’s hard to believe, but that beast killed them."
One of the professors smirked, crossing one leg over the other.
"Let’s check it. Beasts always show their true form when they face danger."
Instantly, his beast—a Level 200 wyvern—released a crimson aura toward Rocky’s cat.
In the blink of an eye, the cat reverted to his true form. His immense body suddenly appeared, taking up a large portion of the hall.
Matt’s dark aura burst out at once, spreading across the hall and forcing everyone’s beasts back into their true forms.
All of them stared at the monstrous cat in alert—some even in fear.
"W-What the fuck?!" The wyvern’s master fell backward out of his chair at the sight of Rocky’s beast.
Most of the people stared at it and swallowed nervously.
"A new race? I’ve never seen it before."