Beast Hack: Customizing Beasts and Capturing Beauties

Luna leaned against the corridor railing, watching Liline prepare the auction hall.

"I wonder what kind of hack Master gave those beasts…"

Loreia stretched her arms overhead, yawning. "Don't know. Just let him be."

Luna raised her eyebrow. "Come on. You're not curious?"

Loreia tilted her head. "It's Lucius. His hacks are always overkill."

Luna smirked. "True. But still… suddenly telling Liora to capture that many beasts in a few hours.

Luna glanced at the room. "And now he's sealing himself inside with three of them? He's definitely cooking something."

Loreia plopped down onto a sofa. "Yeah, well, whatever it is… it's probably going to scare someone."

Luna tapped her chin, eyes still fixed on the closed door. "I just wonder what kind of idea he came up with."

"One minute it's just a standard auction, the next he's got Liora sweeping the fog zone clean."

Loreia shrugged. "Beats me. We'll probably find out the same time the crowd does."

Luna gave a small laugh. "Guess we should just ask him."

Loreia grinned. "You first."

Luna chuckled and turned away. "I value my life."

Then, the door to Lucius' room was suddenly opened.

Lucius came out and was a bit surprised to see them both. "You're here?"

Loreia stood up. "Yeah. We were curious."

Lucius raised an eyebrow. "Curious?"

Luna crossed her arms. "About your plan. You've been in there a while."

Lucius smirked. "I see. Then let's not waste time."

He glanced upward. "Liora."

Without a sound, Liora dropped from above, landing beside them with a light thud.

Luna blinked. "So you were nearby the whole time."

Liora said nothing. Just crossed her arms and stared at Lucius.

Lucius gave a slight nod. "Good. You're all here."

He turned to them fully. "After hearing what Zephyron said—about only wanting to be sold to someone worthy—I decided to change the format."

Loreia leaned forward. "Change how?"

Lucius looked toward the far wall. "I'm going to make the forest harder. Deadlier. A proving ground."

Luna's eyes widened slightly. "So that's why you had Liora sweep the area."

Lucius glanced at her. "Exactly."

Luna nodded. "You wanted a variety of beasts… so you could hack them. Amplify their strength. Make the forest a challenge."

Lucius smirked. "You could say it like that."

He turned. "Liline."

Liline phased out of the wall with her usual graceful silence. "Yes, Master?"

"Summon the cages. The large ones."

Liline nodded. "As you command."

She raised her hand.

In a blink, three massive cages containing Mistvex, Velgrith, and Silphra appeared from the side.

Lucius walked toward them slowly, raising his hand.

He smiled coldly.

"Now… it's time to hack you all."

He turned his head slightly. "System. Hack all targets. Upgrade their stats to A-Rank."

"And also, add a one-day temporary boost only for today auction."

---

[Hack Initiation: Temporary Boost and Mass Stat Enhancement]

[Targets: Silphra, Mistvex, Velgrith]

[Total Beasts: 268]

[Effect: Upgrade All Stats to A-Rank for Each Beast]

[Effect: Apply Unique Boost Separate from Stat Enhancement]

[Duration: 24 Hours]

[Boost Effect: All abilities are amplified by 200%, reaction speed doubled, and resistance to elemental attacks significantly increased]

[Cost Required: 15,000,000 Hack Points]

[Status: Executing...]

---

Each beast flinched slightly as they were being hacked by the system.

Lucius's smirk widened. "With this… half the clients who think they're strong won't make it past the first pack."

Luna tilted her head, watching the beasts being hacked.

"It's impressive… but are you sure this is enough?"

Lucius glanced at her.

She continued, "Some of the ones coming tomorrow are experienced. S-Rank beast tamers. They've fought in arena matches."

Loreia stepped forward. "Yeah… boosting A-Ranks is cool, but if someone walks in with a Sovereign, they'll breeze through."

Liora stayed quiet, but her eyes narrowed slightly as well.

Lucius didn't even flinch. "That's the point."

He looked at the girls.

"If they can breeze through… they deserve to meet Zephyron."

Luna crossed her arms. "And the others?"

"They won't even get close to the auction floor."

Loreia raised a brow. "That many filters? You're gonna piss people off."

Lucius turned back toward the cages. "Good. Let them be angry. Let them fail. It'll make the final round even sweeter."

Luna smirked faintly. "Brutal as always."

Lucius's eyes stayed fixed on the beasts.

"Only the strong will pass. That's exactly what Zephyron asked for."

He then turned back toward them, smirking.

"But this is not the end of the plan."

Luna blinked. "There's more?"

Liora raised her chin slightly. "Another beast?"

Loreia narrowed her eyes. "Wait… don't tell me. It's one of the three from your room."

Lucius smirked, impressed. "You're sharp today, big sis."

Loreia grinned. "I've been paying attention."

Lucius looked to the side. "Liline."

She bowed down. "Yes, Master?"

"Create a containment cage. Large. Secure."

Liline gave a slight nod. "Of course."

She lifted her hand, and the ground in front of them split open.

From below, a massive cage rose.

It was twice the size of the others.

Lucius raised his hand again. "Now… come forth."

A moment later, the beast appeared from the Eternal Vault.

It landed silently in the center of the cage.

A massive creature.

Its body cloaked in thick, shifting fog. Its silhouette seemed to blur at the edges.

All three girls tensed.

Luna took a step back. "Wait. This is…"

Loreia stared wide-eyed. "This was your actual plan?"

Liora narrowed her eyes. "You fused them?"

Lucius nodded. "Correct. This beast is the fusion of Silphra, Mistvex, and Velgrith."

He stepped closer to the cage, arms behind his back.

"And after the fusion… I evolved it into a Sovereign-tier."

Luna muttered, "Master… you're insane."

Loreia was already scanning the beast with her system.

"Damn, its ability set looked stacked. Look at these.

Liora's eyes locked onto the beast. "This is their leader."

Lucius nodded. "The Sovereign Mist Beast. Their commander."

Luna let out a slow breath. "So… even if someone survives the other mist beasts…"

Loreia finished it, "They still have to fight this thing to reach Zephyron."

Lucius turned, his eyes gleaming.

"Now tell me…"

He smiled.

"Do you really think those so-called S-Rank tamers are going to make it through?"