NOVEL WEB Chapter 4: Chapter 4: The Day the Ducks Sang
🦆 Chapter 4: The Day the Ducks Sang
The morning sun rose golden over Verdant Hill, painting the wheat tips silver and coaxing fresh dew from the garden beds. A light mist curled around the duck pond beyond the barn—where quacks echoed in drowsy chorus.
Inside the farmhouse, the Varenthors gathered for breakfast.
Fresh bread, churned butter, and boiled duck eggs sat steaming on the table. Lira stirred barley porridge as Linna tried to sneak a second slice of jam bread.
Sylas lay quietly in a woven cradle beside the hearth.
To an outsider, it was a perfect pastoral scene.
But Sylas was listening.
The pond is stirring. Something's off. No—it's changing.
🪶 Not All Ducks Are Equal
Most of the twelve ducks on the Varenthor farm were simple creatures.
They waddled. They quacked. They laid eggs.
Some were fat. Some were mean. One constantly pecked Bran's boot.
But today, one duck stood apart.
Quorra.
She was smaller than the rest, with a strange silver streak in her neck feathers. She rarely mingled. Slept away from the flock. Ate from the far edge of the pond.
And this morning… she sang.
Not a quack. Not a honk.
A melody.
A single, echoing tone that resonated across the water like the chime of a copper bell.
Hrrrr-huuum...
It was beautiful—and unnatural.
🦆 Duck Song and Soil Response
The moment Quorra's song drifted over the fields, Sylas felt the pulse in the soil.
[Spirit Beast Awakening Detected: Type: Aquatic Avian Variant]
Bloodline Potential: Moon-Eyed Watcher (E-Class)
Mutation: Songweaver Trait (Uncommon)
Chance of failure: 72% (Overload Imminent)
Do you wish to guide stabilization?
—YES / NO—
Sylas didn't hesitate.
Yes.
A warm breeze flowed from the barn, over the grass, and down to the pond like an invisible hand. Sylas's invisible spiritual signature gently extended outward, guiding the surge building inside Quorra.
Breathe, little one. Let the melody root you, not consume you.
🐣 The Choice of Three
Later that day, the family gathered at the pond, murmuring about the strange duck behavior.
"She's… singing again," Jeren whispered. "That ain't normal."
"Not even magical," Thira said, scribbling notes. "It's more like… music with intention."
"She laid a perfect pearl-shaped egg this morning," Maelis added. "Shiny. No cracks. Never seen one like it."
Lira only smiled gently. "Maybe she's blessed."
Bran rolled his eyes but said nothing.
Sylas listened in silence.
He scanned the ducks again, eyes focusing—not on emotion, but essence.
Only three ducks shimmered faintly with spirit potential.
Quorra, the Songweaver.
Dunk, the heavy one with unusually warm feet.
And Pebble, the tiniest, who somehow floated even when dry.
The others? Ordinary. Mortal. Meant for eggs, stew, and survival.
And that was fine.
"Not all life must be legendary," Sylas thought.
"Some must remain simple. For balance."
He would awaken only those three.
🌿 [System Update]
You have selected 3 Ducks for Spirit Bond Eligibility.
Remaining Flock: Normal
Selected: Quorra (Active), Dunk (Dormant), Pebble (Dormant)
Trait Progression Unlocked: Avian Spirit Tier 1
Skill Acquired: Song of Root-Calm (Area-Effect Buff: Chickens, Ducks, Goats)
Title Gained: "The Duck Whisperer"
🪨 The Stone Egg
That night, Lira brought in a strange egg.
"Found it under the lilies," she said, laying it beside Sylas's cradle. "Shiny. Cold. Feels like a stone."
Serra blinked. "Are you sure it's not… magical?"
Thira gasped. "Put it in the dry cabinet! I want to study it!"
But as they argued, Sylas reached a tiny hand forward and touched it.
A soft hum pulsed through his palm.
The egg was from Quorra.
And it held more than life.
It held a secret.