Then slowly—

the child raised his head for the first time.

Beneath the tangled wet hair—

his eyes burned gold.

Not human gold.

Predator gold.

The surviving guards backed away instinctively.

Because every soldier in Ashkar knew the ancient legends.

The Beast Relics.

Weapons forged during the First War.

Artifacts said to contain the souls of divine monsters powerful enough to destroy kingdoms.

Most believed they no longer existed.

Until tonight.

The king groaned beneath the collapsed debris across the ruined hall.

Blood dripped from his mouth as he pushed broken stone away from his body.

“You…” he coughed.

“That relic was sealed…”

The child finally spoke.

His voice remained quiet.

Cold.

“You burned my village for it.”

Silence swallowed the hall.

Several ministers suddenly turned pale.

One old noble whispered in horror:

“The Black Fang massacre…”

The king’s face darkened instantly.

“Kill him NOW!”

Hundreds of royal soldiers stormed into the feast hall from every entrance.

Heavy shields.

Spears.

Crossbows.

The entire palace shook beneath marching steel.

But the barefoot child didn’t move.

The tiger gauntlet pulsed once.

THOOOOM.

A massive golden shockwave exploded outward.

Soldiers were hurled across pillars and banquet tables like leaves in a hurricane.

The spectral tiger behind the boy grew larger—

larger—

until its gigantic head nearly touched the chandeliers above.

RRRRRRAAAAAAAHHHHH.

The roar shattered every remaining window in the palace.

Outside—

thunderstorms exploded across the capital.

Citizens screamed in panic as golden energy erupted from the royal hall into the night sky.

Inside the throne room—

the king staggered backward in fear for the very first time in years.

Because he finally recognized the child.

Ten years earlier—

Ashkar’s army destroyed an entire mountain clan guarding the Beast Relics.

Men.

Women.

Children.

Burned alive.

The king personally ordered every survivor executed.

Except one child whose body was never found.

“You should’ve died…” the king whispered.

The barefoot boy slowly clenched the tiger gauntlet.

“And you should’ve protected your people.”

BOOOOOOM.

The child vanished again.

This time—

the king barely managed to raise his sword before the tiger gauntlet collided against it.

CRAAAAAASH.

The royal blade exploded apart instantly.

The impact blasted the king through three stone pillars.

The entire feast hall began collapsing.

Nobles fled screaming beneath falling debris.

Fire spread wildly across shattered banquet tables.

But suddenly—

the tiger gauntlet started shaking violently.

The glowing beast symbols flickered uncontrollably.

The child froze.

Pain exploded across his arm.

Dark cracks spread beneath the gauntlet.

Then—

the spectral tiger behind him suddenly turned toward the boy himself.

Its glowing eyes narrowed.

Hungry.

One terrified minister screamed:

“The relic is consuming him!”

Ancient legends flooded the hall.

Every Beast Relic demanded a host.

And eventually—

the beast devoured the soul of its wielder completely.

The child dropped to one knee as golden fire spiraled violently around his body.

Memories flashed through his mind.

His burning village.

His mother screaming.

His father standing before royal soldiers.

And one final sentence whispered before the flames consumed everything:

“Never let the beast own your heart.”

The tiger spirit roared again—

this time directly above him.

The palace floor exploded apart beneath massive spectral claws.

The beast was no longer obeying.

It wanted freedom.

It wanted destruction.

Outside the palace—

the storm intensified.

Golden lightning tore across the capital while giant cracks spread through the royal fortress walls.

The king slowly rose from the rubble.

And suddenly—

he started laughing.

Blood covered his face.

“You fool…”

“You think you came here for revenge?”

The child looked up weakly.

The king spread his arms toward the collapsing hall.

“I wanted you to awaken it.”

Silence.

Even the ministers froze.

The king smiled wider.

“The Beast Relics cannot fully awaken without the bloodline of their original guardians.”

The boy’s eyes widened.

“You slaughtered my clan…”

“To unlock the relics.”

The king’s voice became monstrous.

“For ten years I searched for you.”

Then—

the king ripped open his royal cloak.

And attached to his chest—

embedded directly into his flesh—

was another relic.

A gigantic black dragon-shaped core.

The entire hall trembled violently.

Ministers screamed in horror.

Because the king himself had become a vessel.

Dark energy erupted across the palace.

SHHHHHHKKKKK.

Massive dragon wings of shadow exploded from the king’s back.

His body twisted unnaturally.

Bones cracked.

Black scales spread across his skin.

“You are not the only monster here, child.”

The ceiling exploded apart.

The transformed king launched upward into the storm-covered sky above Ashkar.

Lightning wrapped around his gigantic dragon-like form.

Below—

the tiger spirit finally lost control completely.

It lunged directly toward the boy—

jaws wide open.

And the child closed his eyes.

Then—

a warm hand touched his shoulder.

His mother’s voice echoed softly inside his memories.

“The beast protects the heart it trusts.”

The boy’s eyes opened.

Not with rage.

Not with hatred.

But grief.

He slowly placed his human hand against the glowing tiger gauntlet.

“You were trapped too…”

The tiger froze.

The golden rage surrounding the spirit weakened.

And for the first time—

the gigantic beast lowered its head.

The hall fell silent.

The child stepped forward slowly.

Then placed his forehead against the spectral tiger.

“I’m not your master.”

“I’m your family.”

Golden light exploded across the capital.

The tiger spirit dissolved into thousands of glowing fragments—

not consuming the child—

but merging with him willingly.

The gauntlet transformed instantly.

Smaller.

Sleeker.

The savage energy stabilized completely.

Outside—

the dragon king descended from the sky toward the collapsing palace.

“YOU CANNOT STOP ME!”

Dark flames gathered inside his jaws.

Citizens below screamed in terror.

But standing atop the destroyed throne—

the barefoot child slowly raised one glowing arm.

Golden tiger markings spread across his body.

Then—

BOOOOOOOOM.

A colossal spectral tiger erupted into the sky above Ashkar.

Bigger than the palace itself.

The tiger collided with the shadow dragon in midair.

The entire capital shook beneath the impact.

Golden light and black fire exploded across the storm clouds.

The dragon king roared violently while clawing against the beast spirit.

But something changed.

The tiger wasn’t trying to kill him.

It was holding him still.

The child looked directly into the dragon’s burning eyes.

Then quietly said:

“You were never chosen by the relic.”

“The relic was trying to stop you.”

The king froze.

Suddenly—

the black dragon core embedded in his chest began cracking.

Because unlike the tiger—

the dragon spirit hated its host.

For years—

the relic had been fighting him from within.

Waiting.

Searching.

For the true heir bloodline.

The king realized the truth too late.

“No…”

CRAAAAAAACK.

The dragon core shattered.

Dark energy exploded outward uncontrollably.

The shadow dragon screamed as the relic abandoned the king entirely.

His monstrous form collapsed midair.

The child leapt forward instantly—

catching the falling king before he struck the burning streets below.

For a moment—

both of them stared at each other silently beneath the storm.

The king coughed weakly.

“Why… save me?”

The boy looked toward the burning palace.

“Because if I become you…”

“Then my clan truly dies tonight.”

The king’s expression broke completely.

For the first time—

the tyrant of Ashkar cried.

By sunrise—

the war banners above the capital were gone.

The palace stood half destroyed.

The feast hall reduced to ruins.

But across the city—

people slowly emerged from hiding.

And standing atop the broken palace gates—

was the barefoot child.

Not as a destroyer.

Not as a monster.

But as the first guardian Ashkar had seen in generations.

Beside him—

a gigantic golden spectral tiger watched over the awakening kingdom in silence.