What's Happening...
After petting Capri for a few minutes, I wondered how it'll feel to ride a horse that seems larger than any other creature I've ever seen. Though the one thing that puzzled me the most after seeing Capri is was why is he all alone in the far end of the stall? Why wouldn't Father put him near the front so everyone can see his beauty?
I looked towards my brother and asked him those questions. It seems he also didn't understand why Father doesn't show him off or why he put him at the very end of the stall all alone. Then he said he's never seen Capri outside in the fields unless the sun was setting. Before I could ask anymore questions we heard one of the maids blow the whistle for lunch time and I had to say goodbye to Capri. As we started walking out all the strange looking horses I saw walking in, now look different. They almost all look normal and seem more calm and relaxed. Though their calmness did help me not feel such sadness for leaving Capri, I felt terrible for leaving Capri all alone at the end of the stall. After thoughts of Capri filled my mind I have decided when I get home I will ask Father why Capri is all alone and why does he only take him out during sunset!
When we were about halfway home from the stables, Marcus let go off my hand and started to pick up all kinds of rocks on the path. He looked at me with a handful of multicolored rocks and said "I bet I can pick up more shiny and colorful rocks than you!" which put my thoughts on Capri to the back of my mind and put me in competitive spirit to catch them all. We raced around fighting over rock after rock until I saw a super shiny rock in the distance. It looked like a mini sun with green circles on it. It was near this massive tree that had its leaves almost touching the ground. Kinda reminded me of our family crest with the mini sun basically calling my name. As I stared at it more and more the feeling of wanting to have it grew. Which made my feet walk towards it instinctively.
As I was walking towards it I kept looking back towards my brother to see if he noticed me or worse the shiny rock. So when I saw him looking in the another direction, I ran as fast I could to pick it up before my brother noticed it or me running for it. As I neared closer and closer to the rock, the glow from the rock seemed to have shined brighter with each step I took. Before I picked up the brightest rock I've ever seen, I looked around me one last time. Mainly to see if my brother was coming to sneak up on me to steal the rock. After seeing the coast was clear, I picked up the rock and before I could lift the rock up off the ground more than a few inches, my vision went dark.
When I woke up again, the first thing I thought was that the sky looked weird. It wasn't blue anymore, it looked more orange and red like. I tried to sitting but with every breathe I take my lungs felt like they were burning. After what seems like forever I finally was able to sit up and a little while after that I was able to stand up. My lungs were hurting and I couldn't stop coughing. As I looked around me I saw what looked like my home and everything that I've grown fond of living here in my new body - burning. Everything looked like it was on fire. After seeing all the fire, it was then I heard screaming. It was so loud and it sounded so scared. My thoughts were racing and the same question kept popping up "what's happening?! Why is everything burning?"
I tried to scream for my brother to see of he's alright, but my throat was hurting so bad that my voice came out hoarse and barely any sound. When screaming didn't work, I tried to run towards home but every step I took seemed heavier and heavier until my legs wouldn't moved forward anymore. All the sounds I could hear at that point, were the screams and crackling of fire burning my everything away. As tears started to well up in my eyes and my legs finally gave out from under me.
I watched the fire destroy and rampage on my whole existence. It slowly started to spread my direction until a huge gust of wind propelled the fire faster in my direction. I tried to stand up and run in the other direction but my legs seemed to be like water. As the fire got closer and closer the air around me started burning my lungs even further. I turned to face the other direction and got myself to crawl but the fire was too fast. It got to me in what seemed like no time. I laid on my back gasping for air, wishing that the scene in front of my was just my imagination. before the fire engulfed me, it instead circled me. I stared up to the sky and begged for rain to come down and stop the fire from closing in on me.
It was then it seemed like the sky answered my pleas. It started to sprinkle then the rain started to come down heavier and heavier. It put the fire out and for the first time since I woke up I could breathe decently. I sat up this time looked at my home and realized I couldn't hear anymore screams. For the life of me I wanted to just sit there and cry. Cry until the sun comes out again the next day and the day after that but I wanted to know. Wanted to know of this was all a dream or if this was reality.
As I started to stand on the soggy ground, I saw the rock again. Though this time it was centered in the middle of my home. I stared at it and then it clicked in my brain what happened. It was all this stupid rocks fault that everything burned down - that everything was reduced to ashes. I didn't dare to let that rock out of my sight and started to run towards this despicable rock. As I got closer this time, it seemed like the glow of the rock dwindled. I slowed down and saw that the rock was not longer a rock but a egg. The green circles I saw on the rock the first time now form small cracks.
Everything that is happening is so strange and hurtful. my thoughts started to race with more questions. Why was this rock no longer a rock but a egg and why did it burn everything down? What's happening to me? Is this really all a dream? but the screams seemed so real... while my thoughts raced my legs still moved forward until I was right in front of this rock or egg or whatever it really is. I decided right then and there that if I want to see if this is all just a dream or a new cruel reality was that I had to pick up this thing. When I bent down and picked it up, a strange voice echoed in my head, along with a random text like notificationin front of me. All it said was
「 Congratulations, you have tamed a a Twin Tailed Phoenix. Please think of a name you would like to name your new found companion then proceed to shout out the name you've chosen 」
I looked at this rock which turned out to a egg but not only a egg but a beast egg. Not only did this confused me even more but it still doesn't clear up the fact I don't know if this beast egg turned my life into this cruel reality or it was all a test to see if I was worthy of the beast inside. I sat down with the egg in my hands and thought if this is a test then after naming this darn thing I will wake up and everything will be normal again. I hoped and prayed that this was all a cruel test and horrible despicable test. As I racked my brain for names the same strange voice echoed in my head again. Repeating the same random text like notification popping up in front of me.
「 Do you wish to name the Twin Tail Phoenix and label it as your companion? if not please proceed to put it on and the ground while saying 'I decline this offer' then walk in the other direction. You will wake up with no memory of this event but you will also be forbidden to make bonds with the Twin Tail Phoenix from this day forth. 」
After listening to the whole speech I finally got my answer. This was a horrible test to see whether or not I was worthy of this creature but at the same time I realized that if I just leave this thing here I can go back to my home with no memory of this event!
Everything in my body shouted at me to make that decision, to leave this evil creature to fend for itself. I started to stand up and again and before I could place this beast egg down on the ground, my curiosity from my previous life stopped me. I forgot that in those isekai manga that something like this could be rare creature that is always sought after but people always failed to successfully make theirs. Or it could just be a cute and cuddly creature that really does nothing but make readers fall in love with since it is nothing besides a plain companion. Either way, my mouth wouldn't say the words I needed to say to get out of here, so instead I decided to keep this thing for what it is. So I held onto this beast egg and shouted the name I decided for it.