Today was their tenth birthday. Today, luck would decide their fate at this tender age... Their future hinged on this moment.

Today, they would contract their beast.

The Ceremony Master stood at the altar, his robust frame imposing in the temple's light.

His beast, evolved to Silver rank level 2, pulsed with a subtle argentine glow. The beast had matured after reaching the 5th rank, an achievement few could match and even fewer could surpass.

He struck his staff against the floor, the sound echoing through the ancient halls.

"The Ceremony of Ten Years begins now. The beasts will take the mana poisoning your young bodies and save you," he announced, his voice carrying the weight of tradition.

"Remember, your beast's rank determines your place in our society. Iron for the slaves, Bronze for the workers, Silver for the privileged."

He didn't mention the higher ranks. He didn't need to.

The 7th rank, Gold 1.

Throughout the entire city, only five families possessed Gold-rank beasts, and the only living human with a Platinum creature was the king himself.

The only one with a beast of the 10th rank.

♢♢♢♢

A red egg rested on the altar.

The boy who had placed it there positioned himself in the center of the circle.

The egg cracked.

It began to glow, and then…

"A Crimson Salamander!" The Ceremony Master's announcement pierced through the temple as Ron Blackfire's red egg burst into flames. From the ashes emerged a scarlet creature, its scales gleaming like living embers.

Whispers of amazement turned to cheers as the tiny salamander opened its mouth and spat a perfect sphere of fire that danced above Ron's outstretched palm.

An Iron-rank beast at its lowest... but with vast potential.

Not only could it easily rise to Bronze rank, but with proper cultivation, it could even reach Silver.

The kind of creature that opened doors, that with proper investment could transform a mere student into someone destined for comfort and privilege.

Ron's smile widened, already tasting his future among the elite. With his family's proper cultivation techniques, his salamander would undoubtedly reach Silver rank, guaranteeing him a place among the upper-middle class.

Even now, freshly hatched, it granted him great strength and the power to conjure fireballs at will.

"Next!" the Ceremony Master announced.

Ren's heart stopped beating for an instant.

It was his turn.

The metallic taste of fear flooded Ren's mouth as he stared at his gray egg on the stone altar.

Around him, dozens of eggs glowed in other children's hands with promises of better futures, deep blues, vibrant greens, intense reds. Most guaranteed at least a Bronze-rank beast at maturity, and the most expensive ones promised creatures with evolution potential up to Silver level 3.

Only his was gray.

The gray egg barely pulsed in Ren's trembling hands. A pathetic heartbeat so weak he had to hold his breath to feel it.

Today, this miserable egg, the cheapest available, would chart his destiny, decide his place in the world.

All his parents had been able to get him, after selling their last sellable possessions, was this gray egg.

Not white. Not black. Not even brown. Gray.

The color of failure.

Laughter and congratulations for Jin still echoed in the temple as Ren approached the altar. His gray egg looked even smaller now, following the magnificent display of the Crimson Salamander.

Ren mentally reviewed the possibilities for the thousandth time, clinging to hope.

There was a 5% chance of getting a marsh frog. It wouldn't be as impressive as a fire salamander, but with the right cultivation technique, a frog could reach the highest Bronze rank, a "mature" level 2 marsh frog.

But he knew it was asking too much; the probability was too low... He had resigned himself.

Ren would get the common plant.

Yet even the common plant with its 95% probability wouldn't be the end of the world.

An Iron-rank beast that, well cultivated, could reach the lowest Bronze rank, and by avoiding maturity with a secret technique, some people had even managed to take it to Bronze level 2.

It wouldn't be easy, he'd need to invest every coin earned to buy the secret cultivation technique, work twice as hard as others, but at least he could earn an honest living in the end.

It would mean a decent life, the chance to repay his parents even a fraction of what they had sacrificed for him.

But the egg had 3 options.

People called it the failure's egg not because it usually gave a mediocre and weak plant... They called it that because of those who had the misfortune of drawing the third option.

First option: the plant of the mediocre poor people, 94.99% probability.

Second option: the frog of the lucky poor people, 5% probability.

And then there was that tiny, terrifying 0.01% possibility: a spore.

The spore of the unlucky poor people.

The weakest creature ever recorded, incapable of even maturing completely within the Iron rank.

In other eggs, the lowest possibility, that 0.01%, that 1 in 10,000 chance was a magnificent creature with Silver or Gold potential.

In this one, it was hell.

Practically a death sentence in a world where power was everything.

"Look at the failure's egg!" Klein Goldcrest's mocking voice cut through the air like a whip. "I bet it can't even summon a decent frog!"

All the children laughed.

Ren kept his gaze fixed on his egg. He wouldn't give them the satisfaction of seeing how worried he was.

"Silence!" The Ceremony Master's voice resonated beneath the ancient stone arches. "Remember, this is the most sacred moment of your lives. The instant you cease being mere children to become tamers."

Ren closed his eyes, trying to ignore the pitying looks and barely contained laughter. His gray egg rested on the altar like fate's mockery, its weak pulse barely perceptible under his trembling fingers.

The Patinder's son. The boy with the gray egg.

The morning's first sunbeam pierced through the temple's stained glass, and his egg began to glow.

Or at least, that's what Ren wished he could say.

His egg barely emitted a dim glow, so weak that several children had to squint to confirm it was really glowing at all.

Please, he begged silently, anything but the spore.

The egg cracked.

It didn't explode into flames like Ron's. It didn't open in petals of light like this morning's blue egg, from which a water horse had emerged.

It simply... cracked.

A dry, pathetic sound, like a twig snapping.

And from the crack emerged...

A small cloud of gray spores.

The laughter began before the creature finished materializing.

A spore.

The weakest beast ever recorded in the history of summonings. A being so insignificant it didn't even qualify as a complete Iron-rank monster.

"Silence!" ordered the Ceremony Master, but there was poorly disguised amusement in his voice. "Ren Patinder, extend your hand and receive your companion into your body for the first time... It will cure the excess mana in your body."

The cloud of spores floated lazily toward Ren's outstretched palm. It weighed nothing. Emitted no heat. There was no sign of the mystical bond that was supposed to form between beast and tamer.

It just... floated there. Gray. Useless.

"The 0.01%," someone murmured in the crowd. "He really got the 0.01 percent."

Ren kept his head high as he descended from the altar. His parents had sold everything for this moment. They had worked double shifts.

He wouldn't give these brats the pleasure of seeing him cry.

Ren kept his head high as he descended from the altar.

His parents had sold everything for this moment. Had worked double shifts. He wouldn't give these brats the pleasure of seeing him cry.

The contract bond established itself with a flash so weak it barely illuminated his wrist.

His beast now granted him a 10% increase in physical strength.

That was all.

For a scrawny boy like him, it meant maybe carrying one more small bucket of water, or lasting a few extra minutes in the field.

Other children received the ability to manipulate elements, massive increases in speed or endurance, or even healing abilities.

Every creature, from the most common to the rarest, granted power to its summoner. It was a fundamental law of the contract.

Ron growled as crimson scales erupted along his arms, his nails hardening into reddish claws. His canines lengthened into sharp fangs, and a golden gleam appeared in his pupils.

The Salamander hadn't just granted him control over fire and a 40% increase to his strength, his entire body was adapting. His endurance, speed, and reflexes would increase by 20%, and with each evolution, these numbers would double.

By the time the salamander reached Silver rank 2, Ron would have triple the strength of a normal human, a 200% increase, 100% in all attributes plus increased resistance and his fire powers.

Even a simple plant, what Ren had hoped to get, would have provided a 20% increase to vitality as its primary effect, plus a 10% boost to all attributes that could reach 30% or 40% with proper cultivation.

But the spore...

"Pathetic," someone murmured in the crowd. "It's the only known beast that grants no base power. Just that miserable 10% physical strength boost."

Ren remained in place, bound by protocol to witness the rest of the ceremony. Each new summoning was another reminder of his failure.

A wind eagle that enhanced its master's reflexes. An earth bear that doubled physical resistance. A mystic fox that improved perception and senses.

And then, the final summoner ascended to the altar.

Luna Starweaver. Her blue hair cascaded over her shoulders like a waterfall as she placed her black egg on the pedestal.

One of the most expensive.

The entire temple held its breath.

The crack that appeared in the egg was like lightning in the night. From within emerged a shadow wolf, its eyes gleaming with ancestral power.

The aura that enveloped Luna was almost blinding, multiplied speed, sharpened senses, and the gift of manipulating various types of elemental magic.

Increases of 500% or 1000% weren't impossible with that creature.

"A beast with Gold potential!" The Ceremony Master's voice trembled with excitement. "Extraordinary! Less than 1% probability even in a high-quality black egg."

Ren watched as the wolf bowed before Luna, sealing a contract that would elevate her above almost everyone in the city.

♢♢♢♢

Throughout the temple, the changes manifested.

Almost all children received them happily. It was the moment they'd waited for their entire lives.

The weakness they'd felt in recent years due to mana poisoning transformed into a sensation of ecstasy and power.

The eagle boy developed silver markings on his skin and his eyes grew sharper. The girl with the mystic fox saw her senses amplify while reddish marks appeared on her cheeks.

Each transformation was unique, powerful, a symbol of their new status.

Almost all, except Ren's...

His spore would be the symbol that his status was now the lowest.

At least, he thought with bitter irony, it can't get worse than this.

He had no idea how wrong he was.

Then, it was his turn to transform.

The spore simply... dissolved. It melted into his skin without the slightest spectacle, and for a moment, nothing happened.

Then, small luminescent mushrooms began to sprout from his scalp, like tiny glowing toadstools among his hair.

The laughter was instantaneous.

"Look! He's rotting!"

"Hey, Patinder! Are those mushrooms on your head or little peni…"

"Silence!" The Ceremony Master tried to intervene, but the mockery continued.

"Careful, it's contagious!"

"Don't get too close or you'll grow mushrooms too!"

The Ceremony Master cleared his throat after failing to silence the kids, trying to maintain the moment's dignity. "The spore... uh... can mature with proper time. It could reach up to fifty centimeters and grant a 20% increase in physical strength."

More laughter. Everyone knew that getting a spore to mature was almost impossible.

The cost in resources and time would be astronomical, all for a result that any common beast achieved from day one.

Some children even pretended to sneeze and made faces of fear when passing near him, as if he could infect them.

Each successful transformation around him only made his situation more pathetic. While others received claws, mystical marks, and changes that screamed power, he had gotten... "unpleasant decorations" for his hair.

Luna was the last to transform.

The contract with her shadow wolf covered her skin with delicate silver marks that seemed to dance with the light. Her eyes acquired a supernatural gleam, and her blue hair rippled as if submerged in water.

The aura of power emanating from her was almost tangible, 100% speed plus 50% increase in all physical capabilities, plus the gift of elemental magic.

The mushrooms on Ren's head flickered weakly, as if even they were ashamed.

"In one week," announced the Ceremony Master, "you will begin your formal education. The carriages will come to collect you for school as agreed in the contract, where you will remain until maturity, 8 years. Afterward, you will have a brief rest before beginning your military service."

He paused.

"Keep your beasts fused. It is a show of respect toward the sacred bond you have formed today."

The ceremony ended.

♢♢♢♢

Ren waited until he was outside the temple.

Away from the mocking glances, the whispers, the poorly disguised pity.

Only then did he close his eyes and expel the spore from his body. The luminescent mushrooms disappeared from his hair, and the small gray mass returned to floating beside his shoulder.

To hell with respect. To hell with traditions.

Thirty years of his parents' work, they sold their house, saved over 1 million crystals with a frugal life, all... to ruin it with his bad luck.

The path home had never felt so long.

Each step was a reminder of what he had failed to become, of hopes that had vanished with that pathetic gray glow.

The spore floated silently beside him, barely visible in the evening light. His new companion. His symbol of failure.

His destiny.

The path home had never felt so long.

The cobblestone streets of the city center gradually gave way to dirt roads.

Elegant buildings transformed into increasingly humble houses until he reached the outskirts, where his small cabin stood, tilted and worn by time.

Correction, it wasn't even theirs anymore…

His poor parents now had to rent what had once been their property.

He stopped at the door.

The aroma escaping through the door's cracks made Ren's stomach growl traitorously. His parents were talented cooks; it was what had kept them afloat all these years.

Despite their low rank.

With their mature Iron-rank plants, the lowest possible, they'd been incredibly lucky to work in the city's most modest kitchens... Sure, the owner was a great person for not discriminating against them, but their skill was undeniable.

That was the real reason they were accepted there.

The smell of sweet root stew, Ren's favorite, mingled with freshly baked bread.

He stood there, hand on the doorknob, the spore floating pathetically beside him.

Through the window, he could see his mother moving through the kitchen with the grace of years of experience, while his father decorated the table with the only three candles they had left.

They had prepared a celebration feast with the little they had.

When he finally pushed the door open, the lump in his throat was so big he could barely breathe.

"Ren!" His mother turned slightly before his father.

They both looked at the small gray spore, and Ren could see the exact moment hope abandoned their eyes.

Still, his mother wiped her hands on her apron and opened her arms. "My little tamer..."

The tears Ren had held back for hours finally began to fall.

"I'm sorry," he whispered as he entered, his voice breaking. "I'm so sorry. I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."

"Oh, my child," his mother wrapped him in her arms. "It's not your fault. It will never be your fault."

"You spent everything... sold everything... and I..."

His father approached, his steps heavy from a long day's exhaustion in the kitchens. He knelt before Ren, placing his large hands on the boy's small shoulders.

"Son, look at me."

Ren looked up, his vision blurry with tears.

"Remember when I burned an entire batch of bread last year?"

Ren nodded, confused.

"And remember what we did?"

"We... we cut it into cubes and turned it into croutons."

"Exactly," his father smiled. "Sometimes life doesn't give you what you expect. But that doesn't mean you can't make something good with what you have."

"But I... the spore..."

"It's part of you now," his mother added. "And we love every part of you."

"Hey," his father joined the embrace, his voice hoarse. "You're our son. It doesn't matter if you have a spore or a dragon..."

But it did matter. Of course it mattered.

♢♢♢♢

The dining room was small but filled with love and the aroma of the outskirts' finest cooking...

But try as he might, he couldn't enjoy it.

His parents had prepared everything they could in their new situation: sweet root stew, freshly baked bread, they'd even managed to get some wild berries for dessert.

The three candles illuminated the table with a warm glow, so different from the spore's gray radiance.

"Eat a little, darling," his mother served a generous plate. "You've had a long day."

"I'm... I'm not hungry."

"Just one bite," his father insisted. "Your mother spent hours cooking."

But not even the aroma of his favorite dish could overcome the bitter taste of disappointment. Ren rose from the table, tears returning to his eyes.

"I'm sorry," he whispered before running to his room, the spore following him like a gray shadow of guilt.

"Ren!" his mother called. "At least take some bread!"

But the only response was the sound of a door closing.

In the dining room, the three candles continued burning, illuminating a table full of food prepared with love and hope. His parents exchanged glances, the weight of worry visible on their tired faces...

The afternoon's attempts bore no fruit either.

"I'm not hungry," he shouted when his mother knocked on the door with a tray of food.

In the darkness of his room, the boy observed the weak flickers of his pathetic companion.

One week.

In one week, he would have to face school, the mockery, the contempt.

One week to accept that his life would be exactly what everyone expected from someone with the worst possible beast.

A gray life.

♢♢♢♢

In the small dining room, the candles illuminated the exhausted faces of two people who had just watched their last hopes turn into gray spores, and the school contract lay on the table.

It was mandatory... Once signed, he had to attend the School of Cultivation and Evolution for 8 years.

There he would learn to strengthen his creature, develop its abilities, become a true tamer. In one of the best schools, if not the best.

Or that was the idea, but...

"Sixty years," the father murmured, both of them already 60 years old.

Their mature Iron-rank plants barely glowed at their wrists and gave them hair composed of leaves and vines, the result of a life of limited cultivation.

Their hands, weathered by decades working in kitchens, trembled. "We sold everything for this. Everything."

His fingers moved over the document they had signed this morning.

The one that had cost them over 1 million crystals. The one they'd worked their entire lives for.

In their youth, they hadn't had the resources to buy the secret techniques needed to evolve their beasts beyond the basic state.

A simple 40% increase in vitality and 20% to all attributes was all they got from them, but being mature plants allowed them to pretend they were Bronze 1, barely enough "status" to keep their jobs in the third-rate kitchens on the city's outer line.

Luckily, the vitality bonus made them look and feel younger, like a couple in their 40s.

Today, however, nothing in their life felt like "luck".

"We sold everything for this," whispered the mother, tears falling on her worn apron. "Everything so he could have a real chance at a good school. So his plant could grow to Bronze, evolve, give him a better life than ours."

The school was expensive for a reason.

Eight years of intensive training, access to cultivation techniques, resources for evolution, connections, everything necessary to transform a common beast into something more.

They had dreamed of something better for Ren. A rank that would let him walk the main streets without lowering his head.

With a normal plant, Ren would have had the chance to reach Bronze rank 2, improve his vitality to 80% upon maturation and all his base increases to 40%, maybe even get a job in the city's good kitchens learning from his parents.

But with a spore...

"He can't back out now," the mother clutched the contract in her trembling hands, silent tears running down her cheeks. "The payment is made, and the laws are clear, every contract must be fulfilled and every child with a beast must complete their basic education since they passed that law last year."

"If only I hadn't gotten sick, we could have had enough... I was so close to buying the brown egg... But that cursed expensive medicine, I should have di…"

"Don't say that! It's not your fault. Ren wouldn't have wanted that," the mother admonished. "Besides, maybe choosing the best and most expensive school was too greedy on our part."

"What have we done..."