System Change

Chapter 58: I Choose You!

Derek looked down at the struggling grey rabbit in his arms and smiled. Well, now I don’t have to run around looking for you. He thought. He quickly used Identify on the bunny and was surprised to find it at level 64. “You’ve been working hard since the last time we met, huh?” Derek spoke to the Horned Rabbit as it turned its head in confusion.

“You… know this creature?” Bronson interrupted the reunion. He had already put his greatsword away and was watching the two with curiosity.

“Of course, this is Silvi. We met a long time ago, when I was first looking for the dungeon. She has a tendency to fly headfirst into… well… everything. The disease caused her to get the taste for flesh, so she became a pretty good hunting partner, and we traveled together for a while. When I came to the village, I made her stay in the forest because she’s an idiot and would have probably slaughtered the entire village by now.” Derek spoke as if it was the most natural thing.

“I… See…” Bronson replied. “What are you going to do with… Silvi?” He asked.

“Well… Now that I’m getting ready to head into the city, I won’t be able to see her as much. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to use this…” Derek pulled out the Contract Scroll from the storage ring he was wearing. “But, I think I like the creature, so it won’t be too big of a waste.”

Bronson’s eyes flashed. “Is that a Contract Scroll?” Derek nodded. “And you plan on using it on a… rabbit?”

“Is there a problem with that?” Derek asked.

“I guess not, it’s just that they are extremely rare. If I recall, there is a dungeon around this area that drops scrolls, and as far as I remember, it has only dropped two contract scrolls since discovery.” Bronson replied.

How lucky is that little girl? Derek had assumed that the Contract Scroll: Beast was a normal drop from the dungeon, as one out of five in his party had received it.

Bronson continued talking after seeing that Derek was not responding. “You could contract a Wyvern or Direwolf or something. You could contract a Lightning Hawk and use it as an aerial mount, I know where a few hang out, wouldn’t all that be better than a… a bunny?”

Derek furrowed his brows. “What good would that be? I move fast as it is, not to mention the teleporters in the cities. Plus, I like the bunny. Who’s to say I end up liking another beast?” Plus, it’s small and I can take it with me if I ever go back to my other system. Derek did get lost thinking about having a dragon for a second, but he tossed that idea too. The problem was that, unlike tamers and summoners, beasts from contracts could not be ‘put away.’

“If you say so.” Bronson said and remained silent.

Derek sat the bunny down in front of him. “Okay Silvi, this scroll is a contract scroll which will allow us to communicate and you to grow with me. I’ll initiate it, but you have to accept.” Derek explained, but the bunny just stared at him dumbly.

Whatever, here we go. Derek unbound the scroll, but before he could initiate the contract, Silvi jumped up and put her paw on it.

Level 64 Horned Rabbit has requested to make you it's contracted beast. Do you accept?

Y/N

Derek stared at the window in stunned silence. He did not know what to think. This little fucker. He glared at the bunny, but the bunny looked back at him like a master waiting for a child to decide whether to become a disciple or not. When I hit ‘no,’ will it use up the scroll? There was no ‘if,’ Derek was definitely not accepting.

He sighed and mentally selected ‘no.’ To his relief, the scroll did not disappear, and he was able to initiate the contract this time.

You have initiated a contract and requested that the Level 64 Horned Rabbit become your contracted beast. Please wait while it makes a decision.

Derek looked at Silvi, who looked back at him with squinted eyes. What the fuck is wrong with this rabbit. That’s it. If it doesn’t accept, I am not trying again. Derek waited a while to let the bunny make its decision. Finally, the next window came, and the scroll split in two, one half going into the bunny, and the next flowing into Derek.

Congratulations! You have successfully made a contract with Level 64 Horned Rabbit. As part of the contract, you are required to name the beast.

Does that mean that Silvi would have been able to name me if I would have accepted the contract? Derek shuddered at the thought. At the message, he focused on the name ‘Silvi,’ and a new notification surfaced.

Level 64 Horned Rabbit has been named Silvi.

Derek checked his status to see if anything had changed. It had. In between his Stats and Skills section, a new section called ‘Contracts’ had appeared. Derek viewed Silvi’s status.

Silvi’s Status

Name

Silvi

Age

6

Level

64

Experience

N/A (Will Grow Based on Contract Holder)

Class

(Initiate Bond)

Race

Horned Rabbit

Health

1400

Mana

300

Stamina

2000

Stats

Strength

100

Dexterity

155

Endurance

200

Vitality

140

Intelligence

15

Wisdom

30

Skills

Charge

Poor Silvi, having to get by with the 10 points from a basic class. Derek could not help but lament at the bunny’s bad stats. His sight went back to ‘Initiate Bond.’ What is this, I thought we were already bound. He focused on it.

Would you like to initiate a bond with your contracted beast, Silvi?

Note: You can only bond with one beast at a time.

Well, that was always the plan. Yes. He commanded.

Bond initiated, please share your blood with the contracted beast.

What the fuck? I have to feed it my blood? Whatever. Derek took a dagger out of his storage bracelet and jabbed his finger, before realizing that the dagger could no longer cut him. Fuck. He put the dagger away. He searched his storage for anything he could use. His eyes fell on the arm from the Acidic Ghoul, but he quickly scrapped that idea.

God damn it. I hate it when I bite my tongue. He worked up his courage and bit his tongue. A metallic taste flooded his mouth, and he wiped his bloody tongue on his index finger. I hope this is enough. He thought as his tongue had already healed. He stuck his finger out in front of Silvi. The rabbit hopped a little closer and sniffed his finger. Finally, the bunny licked it.

A thunderous crash rang out throughout the forest and the sky began turning purple. The wind picked up as a bolt of purple lightning struck Silvi. Once the bolt made contact, however, it did not disappear. A sphere of purple began growing around Silvi, the bolt feeding the sphere as it grew bigger and bigger.

Finally, the lightning withdrew, and the surroundings calmed. All that was left was a solid purple sphere floating above the ground in front of Derek and Bronson.

“What is that? What’s happening?” Bronson asked, his greatsword already drawn. He was in a combat stance, ready to attack or defend at a moment's notice.

“I initiated a bond.” Derek explained.

Bronson looked at Derek, dumbstruck. “You used your bond on the rabbit? Using a contract scroll is one thing, but using your only bond on a level 64 bunny… Are you insane?”

"Is there something wrong with that?"

“Of course there’s something wrong with it. If… If the bunny dies, it will injure your soul. Why would you share a Soul Bond with something that can die so easily? Sure, with the bond, it will get much stronger because of your strength, but still, it’s a bunny.” Bronson could not understand Derek’s actions.

Soul Bond? It didn’t say it was a soul bond. What happens if my soul is injured? Inwardly, Derek was panicking, but he did not let it show on the surface. Besides, I’m pretty strong, so surely this bond will increase the survivability of Silvi. “I’m sure everything will be fine, just watch.” Derek replied confidently.

Bronson took a breath. “I’ve seen a few bonds before, but I’ve never seen anything like this occur, maybe you’re right. Usually, nobody wants to risk it because of the possible soul damage, so there aren’t many high level people with a bonded companion. They usually settle for the normal growth that comes with the contract.” The man explained.

That’s what I thought I was doing. Derek screamed inside, while maintaining a stony expression on the outside.

They waited. Minutes passed, then an hour. The longer Silvi stayed in her purple cocoon, the more agitated Bronson became. “How is this possible? Most bonds take seconds, a few minutes at most. The longest I’ve ever heard of is half an hour.” He spoke to no one in particular.

Two hours later, the void ball began to crack. One crack turned to two, before it eventually spider webbed into numerous cracks. A bright glow shot out of the cracks as pieces began to fall. The fallen pieces of void turned into particles and vanished before they reached the ground. Yes! My pokemon has finally evolved! In such a situation, all Derek could think about was one of the games that he grew up on.

When all the pieces disappeared, Derek was shocked at what remained.