SCP Corporation: Contain Bonfire

Colin was washed with an indescribable, subtle sense of satisfaction.

The hunger in his stomach was momentarily soothed...

Strength, surged within him.

Although the symptoms of "Beastification" were intensifying, to his surprise, the violent temperament inside him had come to a temporary halt.

Not from any suppression, but because it settled down gradually from being satisfied.

Colin took a deep breath, trying to keep his mind as calm as possible to avoid provoking the beast within.

"Mommy... I'm hungry..."

"I'll find some food; just wait here, mommy will be back very soon..."

"Mmm, can I come too? It's dark here, and I'm scared..."

"No... "

Fragments of voices came into his mind, and Colin was startled at first, then realized these might be the lingering obsessions of that mother.

She comforted the hungry child, and then went out alone praying for food...

From this point on, the memories became noticeably fragmented.

"Mommy found a piece of bread... will... bring it back to you right away..."

"Sorry, mommy is late, you must be hungry... for a long time now... this is, your favorite bread... come on... eat..."

"Don't be afraid... go ahead and eat... after you're full... you'll grow up fast..."

"Then you won't be afraid of the dark... mommy is here... always here... don't cry... don't cry..."

Standing from the perspective of her heart, Colin understood what she saw in him—a child cowering in a dark corner, hungry and scared, and he understood the meaning behind her repeated, hoarse and short voice...

"Don't cry... don't cry... don't cry..."

"Don't cry... don't cry..."

The strong and tender voice pierced through the madness and chaos, echoing in his mind. Colin listened silently as if calmed by it, quietly crouching on the ground, drawing blood through his fingertips.

He couldn't quite identify his current emotions, but they probably weren't the impatience he felt before...

Nearly three hours later, all the blood had been completely drained.

"If I have a chance, I will take care of that child for you."

Having said this, he stood up, but his appearance had undergone an almost earth-shattering change from before.

The dim light of the torch revealed his entirely new appearance.

What was once a skinny body was now filled with bulging muscles, becoming extremely tall, with hands turned into huge beast claws, and pale skin covered by blood-red fur. His pitch-black pupils glowed with a bloodthirsty luster, and his head had completely transformed into that of a beast, standing in the cell like an upright bloody werewolf.

His entire being radiated an ominous aura.

"... Since I can't beat the Warden as a normal person, then I will... stop being human."

Colin stuck out his crimson tongue and licked his sharp fangs, carefully stowed the hardened bread, and then grabbed the iron bars with both hands.

Creak, creak...

The iron bars that were immovable just moments before were now easily pried open to make a passage in less than three seconds.

When Colin stepped out of the prison, hundreds of eyes reflecting green light from different cells watched him.

"They look as if they're pieces of bread slathered with sweet cream..."

A powerful urge to feed emanated from Colin's stomach.

With his further transformation, Colin gained an even deeper instinctual understanding of "Beast Transformation Syndrome" and knew that these imprisoned creatures were no longer human.

If he "ate" all of them, then his strength would surely rise to the next level.

But alas, he could not eat.

Reason, still dominant, told him that to do so would most likely lead to a complete loss of control.

His current strength was sufficient.

Rather than absorbing more power, what he needed was enough reason.

Only the power firmly harnessed by reason could truly be called strength.

"Although I am still lucid for now, this clarity will not last long, and I cannot maintain it..."

Colin shuddered his red fur, suppressing the urge to eat, glanced at the firmly shut dungeon gate, and took a deep breath out of habit, causing a "whooshing" sound in the air.

"Defeating the Warden shouldn't be difficult, but there's not much time. My reason can support me for only a day at most..."

"So, I need to find that colleague quickly, get in touch with Bonfire Company, or else it won't be long before madness is certain..."

"Hmm, before acting, let's use the last fragment of Life Paper to see what might happen."

His thoughts racing, Colin made a decision.

But before he could use the Life Paper, something unexpected happened once again—someone was approaching from outside the dungeon gate.

The footsteps of these people were subdued, as if they had already discovered something, moving cautiously closer.

"Do you feel something's off? The dungeon seems too quiet, for hours now, almost no movement..."

"Could it be... they're all asleep?"

"It's impossible to rest simultaneously for so long; this has never happened. There's a rare individual here that the Warden keeps a special eye on..."

"Let's check..."

The voices of the dungeon guards were notably subdued, but Colin heard every word clear as day. Moreover, he could even tell by their scent...

There were five in total.

Fuck, shit, two of them even had gel in their hair. Why did he have to smell that? Colin blew his nose, silently lamenting the indignity suffered by his nose.

"They'll be close within ten or so seconds. There's no time to use the 'Book of Fate' now. I've always been worried that making too much noise would reveal my presence, yet I overlooked that being too quiet is also an issue with the symptoms of 'Beastification'."

As Colin's thoughts shifted, he receded back into the shadows of the dungeon, his dark vertical pupils reflecting the locked dungeon gate.

Outside, the dense yet gentle footsteps drew ever nearer...

As they approached, the other "Beastified" seemed to realize something for the first time and immediately grew restless, slamming into the cages and howling incoherently.

The dungeon guards heaved a sigh of relief at the noise.

Noise meant that...

Things were probably still all right.

Click...

One of them, a bit too careless from the sound, did not check the peephole but went straight to unlatching the door, intending to check the situation inside.

However, the moment the latch was pulled, the gate was violently smashed open. The guard standing behind the door barely had time to react before a tremendous force struck him, knocking him unconscious to the ground.

The other four were stunned, then their faces filled with horror upon seeing a massive, ominous red-haired beast lunging out of the door.

The behemoth looked down upon them from a height, an intimidating sight.

"Be careful—"

One of them realized the danger and tried to fight back, but before he could raise his arm, the fearsome beast swung powerfully, sending him flying against the wall.

In under two seconds, two of the five had already fallen unconscious to the ground.

The remaining three took advantage of the gap, swinging their handaxes in an attempt to strike, but they couldn't even mar the skin, let alone sever the blood-red fur.