I Gave the Divine Phoenix to My Rival

I poured everything into the celestial phoenix until the night of his rat. He crept into my bed and treated his master like a female of his kind. In my past life, i chose that pure blood celestial phoenix. Only to end up doing it all for mia, betrayed and abandoned by the divine bird. I died in the jaws of abyss beasts, i could only watch. He shielded mia with his golden wings and flew away. He never looked back. This life, i'll give the divine bird to her. She can trouble herself with taming that stupid bird. Every 10 years, the order holds the spirit packed ceremony for its core knights. I was the daughter of the former commander. My magic aptitude was unmatched. Naturally, i got the first pick. The spirit beasts were captured from all over the realm, their talents varied wildly. The absolute crown jewel was the celestial phoenix. A glowing magic collar was locked around his neck. He looked down on us senior knights with pure disgust. The high priest decreed it. He assigned this divine bird to me, but the arrogant bird refused to come near me until mia stepped forward, holding a dying obsidian drake. The divine bird actually lowered his noble head to her. That little drake was a reject. Left over from the other nights. Mia had just joined the order. She could have waited for the next batch to pick a healthy beast, but instead, she forced her way into ours. A spirit pact isn't a game. It's choosing who you live and die with. On a normal day, people might coddle her, but at a moment that would decide all our futures. No one was going to indulge her. Your magical foundation is far too weak. Even if the celestial phoenix favors you now, you could never control his massive mana. Anna, i know i don't have the right to compete with you, it's just i grew up in the countryside. I've never seen such a magnificent divine bird before i snatched the dying drake. I rather like this obsidian drac since the phoenix refuses to acknowledge me, i might as well grant their wish. I'll swap with mia.

Anna, your magic aptitude is unmatched. This drake's bloodline is a mess. Keep the phoenix, leave that dying reject to me. But i knew exactly what i was doing. That celestial phoenix was absolutely worthless. I'm anna. I grew up in the order of the sacred tree. When i was seven monsters killed my parents, the archmage saved me. He took me in as his protege. It played out exactly like this in my past life. That arrogant bird refused to bond with me. As the archmaster's protege, i thought i had to set an example. I poured countless elixirs and high tier materials into him. The orders resources weren't enough. I took dangerous guild missions, and hunted down feral monsters to afford his elixirs. I'd come back bleeding and he wouldn't even look at me. He only cared about the herbs snatching them. Like i owed him. I spent 10 whole years helping him break past his beast form to take human form. His human form was breathtaking almost godlike, but he refused to speak a single word to me. He only spoke when he needed me to hunt for more materials ordering me around like a servant. I was an absolute idiot. I excused his attitude. I thought one day i would finally win him over. Until one day, i returned from a mission. And i saw the phoenix gently fixing mia's hair. His cold eyes was completely soft, full of pure adoration. Mia was spinning around him like a happy little girl. Placing a crown of wild flowers on his head, something inside me snapped. No one could watch their own sacrifices get trampled on like that. Anna, stop asking mia to look after your phoenix when you're away. Wait, what? I never once told her to do that. But the minute you're gone, she runs straight to him. She literally told everyone you begged her to watch him.

My vision went black. I would there bleeding for his resources and she was back home stealing all the credit. Where is her own bonded beast? What gives her the right to lay claim to mine? You mean her obsidian dragon? It died in the second year after its mana went out of control. Everything clicked for 10 years. I cuddled the phoenix. I never forced a spirit pot on him. Mia's bonded beast was dead. All she needed was the next ceremony. Then she could take him from me. What an absolute joke. I was. A decade of my blood and sweat, all of it just to lift her up. I wasn't some gentle forgiving heroine. From that day on, i made her life a living hell on missions. I was jealous. I hated her for stealing him right under my nose. My revenge completely enraged the phoenix. To punish me, he lured me into the mountains, and shattered the ancient seal. The monsters flooded out. Among them was the ancient abyssal dragon, carrying an ancient feral curse. The entire order suffered a devastating blow. The phoenix was impossibly fast. He could have easily flown me to safety, but when the monster's teeth crushed my legs, i looked back in desperation. I only saw him spreading his golden wings. Shielding mia in his arms, flying away without a single look back. This life, i'll just sit back and watch. Without my resources, let's see how long it takes him to shift. Good luck feeding that bottomless pit with her pathetic manner.

When he saw, i wouldn't budge the high priest finally gave in the phoenix, clung desperately to me as feet. Even several senior knights couldn't drag him away afraid of injuring him. The high priest ordered the spirit pot array to be activated. Once the spirit posse array activates the spirit beast must obey its master. Any resistance triggers a severe mana backlash, the magic of the array startled, the drake in my hands. With his last ounce of strength, the frail drake coiled around my arm, terrified i did abandon him. Mia got the celestial phoenix, she was immensely smug. It seems anna and this drag truly have a special destiny. The sheer hypocrisy was nauseating. Shut it, mia. You're only holding that bird because anna let you. Seriously, you should be on your knees thanking her. Oh, don't bother here. Come the fake tears is crying. Literally your only trick. You're embarrassing the whole order. The phoenix couldn't stand seeing them tear into her. He thrust inside the array. Unleashing a furious cry, but his little tantrum wasn't going to change a thing. Once the pact is forged, the spirit beast must share its master's mana. Mia had barely mastered the most basic spells. Her mana pool was pathetically small. It was time for his first real taste of mana starvation suffer through it. You'll get used to the pain. Eventually the obsidian drac coiled around my arm and realized i wasn't pushing him away. He finally dropped his guard, then he finally passed out.