Beast Tamer: I Can See Evolution Paths

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As soon as Asher's inside scoop hit the class chat, the group exploded with messages.

Professor Iris from Bluewind University?

Those who'd heard of her were stunned. Those who hadn't immediately searched her up online—and were first captivated by her looks, then by the long list of accolades and research papers under her name. One look at those credentials, and everyone's expressions shifted to amazement.

They were all dying to know more.

By all accounts, it seemed unlikely that someone like Iris would cross paths with Asher.

Even their class teacher, Mr. Arthur, couldn't sit still.

[Class Teacher: Asher, are you sure about this?]

[Asher: Certain, but I can't go into too much detail yet. Professor Iris didn't tell me to keep it a secret, but it's best to wait for her paper to come out. That way, everyone will trust it more.]

Exactly.

It was one thing for Asher to claim he could evolve a Honeybug; it was another for Iris to publish a paper about it. Which one would be more convincing?

Reassured by his confidence, nearly half of his classmates started to waver, 'Maybe… they should wait a bit longer?'

But some remained resolute, determined to find a beast with great potential over the break.

Opinions varied, so Asher stayed out of it. He'd done his part—given them the information he could. The rest was up to them.

Soon, his friend Vicky sent him a few private messages.

[Vicky: Hey, son, are you serious about what you said in the group?]

[Asher: …]

[Asher: It's legit. Why? Doesn't have much to do with you anyway, right? You already contracted a Dragontooth Lizard.]

Asher searched his memories. Vicky's family was slightly above average, and Vicky had an unfiltered, boisterous personality, often referring to himself as Asher's "old man." Either calling him "son" or going with "big Asher" or "little Asher" for kicks.

Thanks to a few shared quirks and a bit of rivalry, the two got along surprisingly well.

Vicky had bought a Dragontooth Lizard in the second semester of his second year—a whopping 3.4 million yuan for a mid-tier, high-rank beast. Although the Dragontooth Lizard wasn't a true dragon, it was no trivial beast to have the word dragon in its name.

With a slight resemblance to a dragon and a fire attribute, it had overwhelming attack potential and was worth every dollar for its potential.

The only downside was that Dragontooth Lizards had a long maturation period and couldn't skip it with resources. They were slow but powerful, advancing in later stages.

Though capped at mid-tier, once it evolved, it was guaranteed to become at least a high-tier, low-rank beast—a Twin-Winged Dragontooth.

Among the few classmates who had bought and contracted beasts, Vicky's Dragontooth was among the best.

So in theory, Vicky should just be a bystander to this news. For him to ask, there had to be a reason.

[Vicky: It's that Ronnie, that jerk. Ugh, he's been talking trash, hinting that you're no big deal. With your confirmation, I'll be off to shut him up.]

A faint smirk curved Asher's lips.

He'd always known that the four students in class who'd contracted their own beasts were in a bit of a small clique. Their relationships weren't necessarily good—it was more for constant bickering and battle challenges.

Ronnie's family was a bit less well-off than Vicky's, and he'd contracted a mid-tier, mid-rank Thunder Fang Tiger. With a lightning attribute, it also boasted incredible offensive strength.

He and Vicky didn't get along well, and their beasts—the Dragontooth and Thunder Fang Tiger—seemed to have a natural rivalry, like dragons and tigers unable to coexist. Over the past six months, the two had frequently butted heads through beast battles.

As someone from an ordinary background who was close to Vicky, Asher had also become a target of Ronnie's casual jabs. The implication in his words was always that they were from different worlds, and without contracting a powerful beast, Asher wouldn't stand a chance in the core circle of the Beast Tamer Alliance—he'd just be a mediocre, second-rate Beast Tamer at best.

Thinking back, Asher shook his head.

At seventeen, he hadn't taken that nonsense to heart. Now, even less so.

[Asher: Go all out; I've got your back. It's big news, after all.]

[Vicky: Alright. I'm bringing out the big guns today to take him down.]

With Asher's blessing, Vicky charged off.

'Ah, youth, with all that endless energy'

Asher, on the other hand, would just sit this one out.

After stowing away his phone, he glanced over at Little Raven, who had rolled over in its sleep.

'Hmm… with Little Raven's current skills, maybe it is time for a trip to the Battle Center to test things out.'

The day before he planned to go, he received a voice call from June.

"Woohoo. This is amazing. Little Fire Fox finally learned a new skill." June was practically in tears on the other end of the line.

"It's the first one. The very first skill Little Fire Fox learned on its own. You can't imagine how hard that was."

June sniffled, her voice filled with pride. "I'm bringing Little Fire Fox over right now. You have to see her progress."

Asher quickly declined. "I'm about to get off work. Are you asking me to work overtime? Let's meet tomorrow."

"It's the weekend tomorrow. Don't think I don't know you're off." June shouted playfully, clearly miffed.

Anyone could tell the young lady was getting feisty.

Asher sighed, 'Alright, since this heiress insists, and since I am still hoping to get a skill out of Little Fire Fox…'

Calmly, Asher said, "I'm taking Little Raven to the Battle Center for trainee Beast Tamers tomorrow. You can join us if you like."

June's voice softened. "Huh? You're taking Little Raven to the Battle Center? Great idea. Are you looking for an opponent? Let me do it."

"I'll let Little Fire Fox go against Little Raven." she said excitedly.

"Yip yip~ yip yip ow~" Little Fire Fox, cradled in June's arms, joined in, letting out eager sounds.

Need a sparring partner? She's in.

June had always loved battles, and Little Fire Fox was fearless as well.

Now that Little Fire Fox had learned a new skill, both June and her pet were eager to show it off.

"…Alright, tomorrow at 9 a.m. at the trainee Battle Center in the city."

———

"You're here early."

With her high ponytail and sporty crop top and skirt, June looked fresh and energetic as she called out to Asher, hands on her hips.

Next to her, Ivy—dressed in a knee-length, light blue sundress—gave a shy, apologetic smile.

"Sorry, we're a little late."

"A real man wouldn't fuss about it~ It was only twenty minutes." June teased, her wide eyes gleaming.

Asher sighed. "I didn't say anything. You're the one who rushed in with excuses."

June pouted but held her tongue.

Checking the time, he noted it was almost 9:30. Turning to the two girls, he asked, "Had breakfast yet?"

Both shook their heads. It was the weekend, after all—who wakes up early on a day off?

Besides, breakfast? Weren't three meals supposed to be lunch, dinner, and midnight snacks?

"Let's grab breakfast first, then we'll head in."

With a wave of his hand, Asher set the plan.

June and Ivy followed obediently, linking arms as they walked behind him.

None of them noticed the envious, almost hateful stares from the surrounding crowd.

Here was a tall, handsome young man with two beautiful girls at the Battle Center entrance, casually chatting about breakfast.

The two girls were stunning and well-mannered.

All around them, solo boys with their pets, here for their own battles, couldn't help turning red with envy.

'Unfair'

'Two of them? He has two?'

They didn't even have one.

Asher had no idea what they were thinking.

But even if he did, he'd probably just smile at them.

After breakfast, he led June and Ivy into the Battle Center.

The arena was even larger than Asher had anticipated.

The Battle Center had two levels.

The first floor was open and had several public battle arenas, where trainee Beast Tamers could fight for free by scanning their ID cards. Spectator seats around the floor were open to paying viewers.

The second floor required reservations and hosted private arenas. Entry wasn't cheap, but it offered privacy, and only the fighters could invite others to watch.

Asher opted for one of the open arenas on the first floor.

Seeing him approach with two girls, several young Beast Tamers looked like they wanted to challenge him.

But June stepped forward, "Let's go. Little Fox and me has been looking forward to this whole night."

[T/N: Make sure to join Discord through the link below for major announcements & giveaways.]

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