I am Just an Average Tamer

Kai's smile returned.

Bloody. Worn.

But blazing with fury.

"Let's fucking end this."

Vael answered with a piercing screech that echoed across the chamber, the sound raw, strained.

They stood together. One man. One beast. And ten shadows hunting them down like rabid hounds.

A growl came from the right. One beast lunged.

But Kai was ready.

He pivoted, body low, letting the creature's momentum pass overhead, then slashed upward, the dagger biting into its belly as it sailed past.

Thunk!

Blood sprayed. It yowled and hit the ground, twitching violently before falling still.

Nine left.

Vael took flight, shaky at first, but then the wind surged beneath his wings.

He spun once in mid-air and fired.

[<Echo Ball!>]

Which slammed into another beast's side.

It flinched, but the attack didn't down it.

Didn't matter.

Kai was already on it.

He sprinted forward, each footstep a burst of determination, and plunged his dagger into the wounded beast's flank.

It howled and clawed blindly, catching his shoulder, but he didn't stop.

He yanked the blade free, rolled under its arm, and stabbed again, right into the spine.

Crunch!

And.

Dead.

Eight left.

But they were circling now, learning. These weren't dumb beasts. They were coordinated.

They struck from both sides.

Kai blocked one swipe but took a brutal hit to the ribs from the second.

He staggered, but Vael dove like a meteor, claws out, talons slashing at the beast's exposed eye.

It shrieked in agony.

Kai pushed through the pain and lunged forward, sinking his blade into its throat.

He was running on adrenaline now.

On instincts carved from survival.

Seven.

A powerful beast, larger than the rest, pounced from the back.

Kai spun, but too slow.

It slammed into him, sending him sprawling across the ground. His back cracked against a jagged rock. His vision flickered.

He gasped, coughed, and blood splattered the stone.

His fingers twitched. He reached for his belt.

The beast charged again.

He hurled a flash bomb.

Bang!

A burst of light blinded it momentarily.

Kai forced himself to his feet, biting back a scream from his cracked ribs.

His hand moved on reflex.

[<Ghost Steps!>]

He appeared behind the stunned beast. With a snarl, he grabbed a short, curved blade from his thigh sheath and rammed it into the back of the creature's neck.

It roared, convulsed, and dropped.

Six.

But Kai didn't look better than them.

Blood ran down his back, soaking his waistband. His vision blurred with every second. Every breath felt like he was inhaling knives.

Still… his eyes burned.

He wasn't done.

Not yet.

Vael swooped again, casting in a wide arc.

[<Wind Fang!>]

It sliced across the battlefield, grazing two more beasts.

One lost a leg. It tried to stand, snarling, but Kai was already moving.

He picked up a discarded spear from the ground.

A relic from a long-dead challenger.

He twirled it once, adjusted his grip, and hurled it.

The spear struck the limping beast in the ribs.

It shrieked once.

Then collapsed.

Five.

The others hesitated.

For just a second.

That was all Kai needed.

He surged forward, feral, like a beast himself. He leapt over a low swing, slid beneath another, came up with a dagger between his teeth and a short sword in hand. He moved like smoke. Like a shadow with a vendetta.

[<Phantom Slash!>]

He slashed through a beast's legs, pivoted, and carved across its belly. As it fell, another lunged for his side.

Vael intercepted mid-air, both wings glowing faintly as he slammed into it with a double strike, one claw, one wing.

Kai turned to see two more charging side by side.

[<Ghost Step!>]

He flickered, and they tackled each other in confusion.

He dropped in from above, landing with a brutal heel on one of their necks. A snap.

Then it was dead.

The other was still recovering.

He didn't give it the chance.

He plunged both daggers into its side, pulling them sideways in a brutal rip.

It spasmed.

Collapsed.

Three left.

They didn't charge this time. They waited, eyes glowing. Watching. Sizing him up.

Kai wiped the blood from his mouth and spat on the stone.

"Come on then. Scared now?"

The largest of the remaining ones, black fur, armored scales down its spine, growled. It stepped forward.

Kai's hand twitched. He only had a few seconds of focus left. His body was failing. Mana running dry.

Then a whisper passed through his mind.

Vael's call.

His partner dropped to his side, breathing hard, but eyes locked with his.

They moved together.

The beast roared.

Then Kai gritted his teeth, and he mustered half of his essence.

Then.

His body surged forward, faster than the eye could track. The world blurred. The beast swiped, but Kai slid beneath the arm, slashing its tendon.

It stumbled.

He flipped over its back, drove both blades down.

It shook, violently.

Then reared up, throwing him high into the air.

For a moment, Everything froze.

Then Kai shouted—

"VAEL!"

His falcon burst from the side and caught him mid-air. Not strong enough to carry, but enough to glide. Enough to guide.

Together, they plunged.

A freefall strike.

Kai's blades gleamed.

[Sonic Dive!]

He struck the beast's skull with both weapons, driving the steel straight through.

The beast let out a broken, dying howl.

Then silence.

Only two remained.

They backed off, growling, hesitating.

Kai dropped from the alpha's corpse, blood-drenched, swaying, but still standing.

He met their eyes.

"Run."

They bolted.

He didn't chase.

He just stood there, panting, dripping with blood, his own and others.

The chamber was silent now, save for his ragged breathing and Vael's soft wingbeats.

He dropped to one knee. Not from weakness.

But from relief.

It was done.

He'd won.

[Trial Completed.]

'Huh?'

The glyphs carved along the walls lit up in a bright azure glow. One by one. Pulsing with raw magic.

Then—

A chime.

And a floating panel appeared in the air.

[You have passed the Trial of Fangs.]

[Evaluation: Good.]

Kai blinked.

Then he chuckled. Quietly at first.

Then full-on laughed, blood in his teeth.

Vael landed beside him, nudging his shoulder gently.

He raised a hand and stroked the falcon's head, eyes softening.

[Final Test: Commence.]