Interstellar Beast Master

Chapter 51: Terror Incident I

Inside a certain hotel room.

Waves of heat shimmered through the air, dense and humming. The power pulsing inside the bodies of three beings made the atmosphere feel alive- taut, charged, suffocating in its intensity.

"Hoo..."

Anastasia had peeled off more layers of clothing, her body radiating so much heat that anything extra felt unbearable. Her baggy suit pants were gone, replaced by snug briefs. Her top half was reduced to a white undershirt, clinging to her sweat-slicked skin as she moved.

She was doing push-ups.

"1,123, 1,124... 1,200!"

She counted out loud, her tone steady and focused, her movements fluid like her body didn’t know exhaustion anymore. When she finished, she sprang upward, nearly grazing the ceiling before landing effortlessly. She moved like a weapon that had been sharpened too well.

"More than a thousand push-ups, and I still feel like I could do another thousand. I don’t know how that Glassblood doctor did it or what these Serums were made from, and yeah... I’m kinda sad the Drunken Butcher killed him. But still—he has my thanks."

...!

Her voice carried a strange kind of respect. The power surging through her didn’t just feel intoxicating- it felt purposeful.

"With power like this, I might actually be able to match a Basal Form Interstellar Beast and their Master. I took nine serums to get here, but the last two? Nothing. No added effect. But you two..."

She turned toward Damian and Kitsuul.

Damian sat cross-legged in a meditative position, his body humming with terrifying energy. He had absorbed more than forty serums, and it showed. His skin radiated with a faint brilliance, his muscles perfectly sculpted, his dark silver hair practically glowing with a luminous sheen.

His jawline looked carved from marble, and his skin—flawless. The kind of flawless even women who spent fortunes on beauty products would envy.

He looked like a dormant beast- coiled, contained- holding back the raw force simmering inside.

Kitsuul, on the other hand, floated midair. She had taken over fifty vials into her tiny frame. Now, she bristled with waves of silver brilliance, a ring of energy orbiting her body in slow, pulsing rotation.

Her power had multiplied- fivefold, sevenfold- maybe more. It was far more than Damian had expected, and the boon from this stolen ZENTHRA resource was nearly overwhelming.

He opened his eyes, eyes he’d kept closed not only to monitor the changes in his body, but also to avoid gazing too long at the woman across from him- her form now radiant, her energy magnetic.

His thoughts kept circling back to her since the moment they’d walked into this room. And now, containment was his only option.

So he looked away- toward the other open cases on the floor. Besides the three that held the Natural Nanotech Blood Serums, one held official Guardian Suits, and two more cases were sleek, metallic—and filled with Obsidian Entropic Soft Crystals.

One case held ten. The other, fifteen.

The implications were huge. Enough to potentially evolve Kitsuul even further.

But right now, Damian could tell that her small silver body was full. Saturated. The serum’s effects were still flooding her system, her cells breaking it down and storing the surge of energy.

She couldn’t take anything more. Not yet.

He exhaled, slowly curling his fist, feeling the immense strength ripple under his skin.

"I’ll have Kitsuul eat the Obsidian Entropic Soft Crystal once she stabilizes. After I get back from that ridiculous Club Skyspire celebration tonight. I doubt it’ll be worth it, and it is not really my scene."

He glanced out the window. The sun had finally dipped below the skyline. Night had come.

And outside, Ebonreach Metropolis was just waking up.

The citadel never slept.

Anastasia resumed her push-ups, speaking easily between reps as if her lungs hadn’t even tired.

"Go. Socialize. Learn who the Beast Masters are friends with. Where they party. Where they drop their masks. The information ZENTHRA gives me only goes so far. The real secrets- weaknesses, hidden truths- they’re always behind closed lips. And you’ll only hear them if they forget to hide."

As usual, she was right. Damian stood, stretching as he wondered what he’d wear.

And as if reading his mind...

"I splurged on a suit," she said. "Something a Stackborn trying to pass for a Glassblood would wear. Just enough flash that no one will mock you for being there. It’s in that bag over there."

She pointed toward a luxury brand bag—one Damian didn’t even recognize.

He took a single step and immediately arrived in front of the couch, his body moving too fast, too easily. Inside the bag: belt, shoes, black suit pants, and a sleek blue dress shirt.

Black and blue.

The fabric shimmered faintly in the light, modest and bold all at once.

He glanced at Anastasia, still hammering out push-ups, and then quietly moved to the bathroom to get ready.

Less than thirty minutes later, freshly showered and dressed, he stepped out- dark silver hair combed back, muscles tapering under the clean lines of his shirt and pants.

He looked... stunning.

"How do I look?"

The young woman he left behind, now glistening with sweat, finally rose from the floor. A small puddle had gathered beneath her.

And when she stood...

...!

She froze.

Blinking at him.

Then, with a too-casual throat clear, she grabbed a towel and turned away, heading for the bathroom.

"You look like you’re about to make a few Beast Masters stare too long. Just be yourself and everything should be good. Use the ZENTHRA device to summon one of their vessels to take you."

She disappeared into the bathroom with those words, almost like she was running.

Damian blinked after her, then shrugged while shaking his head.

Just be himself and enjoy.

He had never liked socializing. It always felt like a game with invisible rules- one wrong move, and silence would collapse around him like a trap.

That was what made him love Ilyana.

She was okay with silence.

She let him be.

And now, thinking of her, the anger stirred inside him again- cold and coiled. He clenched his fists and stepped toward the door.

"I’ll be back. You’ll be okay here?"

Anastasia’s voice floated out through the bathroom door, light but firm.

It felt like she had her back leaning against the bathroom door as she spoke.

"I could probably rip apart an Initiate Interstellar Beast Master right now. I’ll be okay."

Damian nodded once.

Kitsuul landed lightly on his shoulders, her slightly larger body still perfectly perched.

And then, he stepped out.

Toward Club Skyspire- a place atop one of the tallest towers in Skyglass Heights.

Not exactly how he imagined spending his Friday night.