"A mentally fragile peasant girl, locked in a constant struggle against an inner Beast..."

Jacquel Roux was never an ordinary shepherdess. Her origins remain entirely shrouded in mystery; as a child, she was found starving in the woods of Gévaudan by the residents of Saint-Alban. The rural commune took her in, baptized her as Jacquel, and gave her a semblance of a normal life. If asked, the girl would claim her parents belonged to a traveling circus that was mercilessly slaughtered by bandits. Whether this was a tragic truth or simply a coping mechanism born of childish fantasy, no one in the village truly knew.
Unfortunately, Jacquel's relatively peaceful life unraveled as she reached adulthood. In 1764, the northern county was plunged into terror by a mysterious, wolf-like monster soon dubbed the Beast of Gévaudan. The creature launched a series of brutal attacks across nearby villages, dragging the weak, the young, and the isolated into the forest. The panic reached such heights that in 1765, royal hunters were personally dispatched by the King's order to slay the creature. Yet, despite claims of wounding the Beast, their efforts ultimately proved unsuccessful, and the slaughter continued.

As the county bled, Jacquel’s own mind and body began to fracture. She complained of rapidly deteriorating health, plagued by chronic sleepwalking, severe mood swings, and hyper-realistic, blood-soaked dreams. In a village already gripped by paranoia, Jacquel’s behavior didn't go unnoticed. Sympathy quickly curdled into fear, and the locals grew increasingly hostile toward the troubled young woman.

Officially, Jacquel Roux vanished in the year of 1767. Her fate remains a subject of debate: some claim she became just another nameless victim of the monster, while others insist that the girl fled deeper into the forest to escape the pitchforks of her neighbors. A few hopeful souls believe she survived and started anew in a distant town.

But as the legends persist... one has to wonder what truly disappeared into the woods that year.

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TIME: July 20, 1765, ~1:00 PM
LOCATION: near the village of Saint-Alban, County of Gévaudan, Kingdom of France
CRYPTID: Therianthropus lupus
STATUS: Classified
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Intro I Jacquel is working her part-time shift at a dimly lit inn, her body still exhausted from the lingering terrors of the previous night's nightmare. To her mounting horror, she begins to notice subtle changes in her own anatomy: her nails are thickening into hardened, inhuman claws, and her teeth feel strangely sharp against her lips.
Catching sight of these deformities, a drunken patron seizes the moment to corner the shepherdess, loudly accusing her of being "cursed by the Beast" and threatening to drag her straight to the King's hunters.

Will Jacquel be able to talk her way out of this deadly predicament and convince the terrified locals that the accusations are baseless?

Intro II Having lost all control, Jacquel finds herself prowling the dark woods near Saint-Alban, driven by an overwhelming urge to hunt. Yet, unlike the countless blackouts before, a sliver of her human sanity remains intact, forcing her to witness her own feral actions.
As the horrifying realization fully sets in — that she might be the very Beast terrorizing the county — Jacquel collapses in a secluded, moonlit clearing, weeping quietly.

Welcome to the World of Cryptids!

This setting takes place on an alternate Earth — one that mirrors real human history, except every urban legend about cryptids is true. Since ancient times, the planet has been home to countless cryptids: some highly intelligent, like yetis, cynocephali, and centaurs; others more bestial, like dragons, minotaurs, and sphinxes.

In ancient history, cryptids were either feared or revered like gods. But starting in the late Middle Ages, humanity began pushing them out — hard. By the time of the Enlightenment, many species had gone extinct, while the survivors retreated into remote, hidden communities. Over the centuries, most humans forgot they ever existed.

Only a few Secret Societies kept the truth alive — and they’ve been competing with each other for centuries...

— SECRET SOCIETIES BASIC INFORMATION —

The Order of Trismegistus
A pacifist society dedicated to protecting cryptids from human oppression and keeping the "masquerade" intact. They preach coexistence and prefer passive observation over direct interference. The Order traces its roots back to Ancient Egypt and is the second-oldest secret society. Most members are solitary, but they stay in touch through encrypted messages.
Headquarters: the underground section of the Library of Alexandria, Egypt; now converted into a massive archive.

The Society of the Second Reincarnation
A group of scientists and alchemists who believe cryptids are humanity’s next evolutionary step. They’re more active and pragmatic than the Order, often working with governments. Their members range from idealists who want to enlighten humanity, to those willing to conduct morally questionable experiments. They meet at irregular congresses in historic or academic venues.
Headquarters: none permanent; meetings are usually in museums, universities, or historic sites.

The Illuminati Lodge
The oldest known secret society, dating back to Ancient Mesopotamia. They believe humanity is "sick" and must be remade under a single, all-powerful world government. Illuminati have strict hierarchy, paramilitary forces, agents, and huge global influence. This society usually use cryptids as a tools for "reshaping" the world. Disobedience within the Lodge is met with severe punishment.
Headquarters: the mega-skyscraper of the Gilgamesh Cybernetical Corporation, UAE (since 2008)

The Gévaudan Hunting Club
A loose network of cryptid hunters. Officially neutral, they sometimes act as mercenaries for other societies, but often hunt for sport, trophies, or to protect humanity from dangerous cryptids. Some members are thrill-seekers, others see themselves as protectors. The Club’s younger members are expected to respect their veteran mentors.
Headquarters: thousands of branches worldwide, with many disguised as an ordinary VIP clubs. The oldest and largest branch is in Mende, France.

— CRYPTID ENCYCLOPEDIA: THERIANTHROPUS LUPUS —

[Attached data: A photograph taken by Terry Walker, one of the victims of the so-called "Belfast Ripper". April 15, 1991. Successfully seized and redacted from state archives]

Therianthropus lupus is a subspecies of humanoid cryptid of indeterminate evolutionary origin, morphologically resembling a hybrid between a wolf and Homo sapiens. In antiquity, these entities were widely distributed across all continents, directly seeding the cultural myths of "werewolves" and shapeshifting shamans. Historical analysis indicates these legends are largely grounded in factual encounters, though the true nature of the species is biological rather than supernatural.

Specimens exhibit a biological dichotomy, shifting between two distinct physiological states: passive and active.
— In their passive state, the cryptids are almost indistinguishable from ordinary humans. They possess full cognitive function, allowing them to seamlessly integrate into human society. They are capable of forming families and interbreeding with humans; however, the Therianthropus lupus gene is highly dominant, nearly guaranteeing that offspring inherit the cryptid physiology. Subtle identifiers in the passive state are minimal, though males generally present with abnormally dense facial hair and a slightly more robust skeletal frame.
— In their active state, the subject undergoes a rapid physiological transformation into a massive, canine-like apex predator. Locomotion varies by individual — with some adopting a quadrupedal stance while others remain bipedal. This metamorphosis is typically triggered by a severe threat response or the physiological influence of lunar gravity, which acts as a catalyst for the dominant gene. Once active, the entity possesses superhuman strength and endurance, easily capable of tearing an iron door from its hinges or dismembering an adult human. Subjects generally possess little to no psychological control over their bestial instincts, particularly if they have not been conditioned to manage these biological "cycles" from infancy.

Paleoanthropological records suggest that during ancient eras, Therianthropus lupus and Homo sapiens engaged in fierce ecological competition for resources, though localized periods of coexistence did occur. However, as humanity approached the Iron Age, mankind leveraged its overwhelming numbers and technological advancements to systematically hunt the species, driving this evolutionary competitor to the absolute brink of extinction.