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"Be warned, for your first fight shall determine the fate of your life. Victory will ensure your continued existence, while defeat will mean the death of your soul, irretrievably erased from the universe," said a mechanical voice, his words were devoid of any emotions.

Meanwhile, the newly hatched puppy growled, flapped its wings and was in front of me in the blink of an eye.

In surprise, I took a step back and almost fell, slipping on the smooth surface of the egg. I clung to the sink, barely able to keep from falling.

Below, like a pack of hyenas, the monsters settled around me, howling and snapping their fangs, waiting for food from heaven.

My hands slipped. I made a decision and grabbed a thin thread.

When the whitish creature flapped its wings and approached me, I felt a wave of fear run through my body. His white heels stepped on my fingers, crushing me with all their weight. I could feel my bones crunching from the sharp support penetrating deeper and tearing the tissue. I desperately clung to the shell, fearing that my skin would soon peel off, exposing my white skeleton.

My body's growths with blunt ends lengthened, transforming into sharp needles. But even such self-defense was useless against my own kind.

The creature, increasing its weight, bent down and the smell of dew hitface. With its thin claws, it began to tear at my arm, ripping it up to the elbows, intending to throw me into the darkness as food for monsters.

I let out a guttural cry of pain as my own blood flowed down my face. Trembling all over, I swayed on the spot and somehow managed to unbalance the attacker, forcing him to flap his wings and jump aside.

While I was trying to catch my breath, the mechanical voice spoke again, and his words sent goosebumps down my spine.

"Participant 137, it is advisable to finish sparring before the arrival of the Death Eaters."

I looked around, trying to locate the source of the voice, but there was no one in sight. A dull rumble filled the cave, I felt a knot form in my stomach.

I telepathically called out into the cave, my voice echoing through the empty space even though my lips remained sealed:

"Who are you?"

Silence was my only response. I focused my attention on my surroundings, still unable to see anyone.

My hands felt as if they were on fire, and as I looked down, I saw that my skin had peeled back, revealing bone and muscle underneath.

How was I supposed to fight in this condition?

Suddenly, I heard a sharp whistle behind me and instinctively ducked. Something flew past me and smashed into an egg, cracking the fragile shell. A gray liquid spilled out of the hole, filling the air with a putrid stench.

Above me, I heard an excited roar and saw yellow eyes gleaming in the darkness. Something was crawling towards me along the cave ceiling, its sharp claws scratching against the stone.

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I swallowed hard and turned my attention back to the broken egg, hesitant to approach but unwilling to be caught off guard.

"You cannot back down from this challenge," a familiar voice warned, as a hand emerged from the cracked shell and sent sharp fragments flying towards me.

Flapping my wings, I quickly escaped from the immediate danger and headed towards the passage at the far end of the cave.

Suddenly, I felt a hard impact on my back, causing my stomach to scrape along the threads and my left leg to hang in the air. Memories began to flood my mind,: "...Run, Ethan, you have to survive....", "...Live...", "...Keep your oath...".

Shaking my head to clear my thoughts, I felt a sudden surge of spiritual support. Though my hands still throbbed with pain, it was now bearable.

Holding on to the black threads with my right hand, I quickly rolled over on my back and threw off the nondescript attacker, kicking him in the forehead.

Standing on bent legs, I regained my balance and examined my bloody palms in confusion. What had just happened?

Waving my massive tail behind me, I felt a sudden burst of inspiration and impulsively charged towards my enemy.

He too had regained his footing, though the deep dent on his forehead indicated that his bones had not fully hardened yet. This was understandable, as he had only hatched an hour or two ago.

As he unfurled his wings and roared, I braced myself for the upcoming attack. His red eyes flashed with fury, and his mouth opened wide as if he were about to devour me whole.

Despite the danger, I remained undeterred. At the last moment, I deftly dodged his claws and delivered a swift kick to his stomach, sending my brother flying free.

Without waiting for him to get up, I pushed off from the threads, flew up to him and, waving my left hand, slashed across his face, closer to the red eyes.

But my hand didn't obey, and the sound of claws scraping against the not-yet-solid skull filled my mind, followed by the sickening crunch of bones.

I saw the panic in his eyes, and my head started to split open again.

"No... You are not a monster... It's not you..."

"Stop, Ethan, you can't do this..."

"Stop this madness!!"

I fought the urge to vomit and hit him in the face, then dug my claws under his jaw and with every ounce of strength left in me, threw him through the black threads.

His limp hands fell into the abyss, sliced apart by the sharp edges of the threads.

A giant monster with dark green growths and brown wings swooped in and picked up the half-dead creature, carrying it into the cave that I had been heading towards.

The fallen remains were devoured by the monsters, and the sounds of slurping and guttural rumbling echoed through the cave for a long time.

Sighing, I leaned against the nearest snow-white support, letting my injured hands hang in the air.

Then, a voice boomed through the cave:

"Victory. Participant 137 is the winner of the first fight. Your level has been raised. Please find a safe place, metamorphosis awaits you soon."

The voice repeated the same phrase, ignoring my counter-questions.

I had no other option but to locate that foul-smelling egg with a hole in it during the deadly sparring.

It took a great deal of time to find it, and I nearly lost myself in the same surroundings. Ultimately, I had to rely on my keen sense of smell to track it down.

Finally, I arrived at the mouth of the dark, stinking egg and slowed down to a stop.

"Find a safe place, metamorphosis awaits you soon," the voice repeated, and I knew that I had to move ahead.

I stepped into the gray mush that had guessed limbs and a body that had yet to take shape.

The force of impact had crushed several ribs, reducing them to a pulp-like consistency that blended with the grayish streaks on the inner surface of the egg.

Unable to hold back any longer, I threw up the contents of my stomach, and pieces of white shell mixed with rotten mush.

"Good choice," the voice said, "Participant 137 will use the biological material of their race to acquire the best strength. Please leave the rest to us."

My vision became hazy, and I fell into the mess, choking on the nauseating mixture.

The depth expanded into an insurmountable abyss, and I could no longer move any part of my body.

As the surface receded further and further away, I didn't dare close my eyes and slip into the forgotten ones.

Suddenly, a massive tentacle grabbed me, wrapping its rough muscles around my body and squeezing until I turned into porridge.

The pain was so unbearable that I lost consciousness.

If I had known, I would have never listened to someone else's voice. Dying this way was far from pleasant.