Weakest Beast Tamer Gets All SSS Dragons

Ren smiled while observing the Terror collect fragments with speed that gave evidence of the anticipated practice of this exact scenario. He thought that Taro definitely wasn't any pushover, that even in defeat he'd found a way to create continuous problems for his opponent.

The titan had fallen after an epic battle that would be remembered for years in the academy.

But its 'shadow', the articulated nightmare that now positioned itself in front of the hydra with dozens of yellow mineral fragments orbiting around its multiple legs, remained a threat to be feared as well.

The battle between Ren and Taro hadn't ended. It had only entered its second phase.

In the stands, Selphira held the unopened letter still in her hand, completely absorbed in observing how this next exchange would develop. She wanted to see how Ren would handle the Deep Terror…

And wanted to see Liora's battle eventually.

Politics could wait until these extraordinary battles concluded.

Because she wouldn't miss the rest for anything.

The Deep Terror stood there, its massive form now adorned with the beetle's legacy fragments of living mineral that pulsed with residual energy from their creator. The creature looked even more nightmarish than usual, its already disturbing silhouette now studded with golden mineral pieces that caught the light at unnatural angles.

Ren assessed the situation rapidly through his bond with the hydra. The beast was a bit tired from the extended battle, had expended significant mana even though the sustained wood drain had replenished some, it also burned more in the desperate defensive beam.

Not critically exhausted yet, but it was beginning to be noticeable.

And now it faced an opponent that had inherited weapons from a fallen titan.

The Deep Terror's legs moved with that characteristic fluid grace despite the creature's enormous size, fragments of mineral shifting in orbit around specific limbs as if testing weight and balance. Taro was clearly preparing something, positioning his beast optimally to leverage the unexpected advantage the beetle's sacrifice had provided.

Several spectators leaned forward with renewed interest, recognizing that what they'd thought was the climax of the battle had merely been the first act.

♢♢♢♢

Ren wouldn't just observe the Deep Terror collecting the yellow mineral fragments without doing anything about it. He knew he had to stop it...

Because he had been the one who originally convinced Taro that the dynamic between the Assassin and the Beetle was good, that the two beasts could form a combination that would amplify the strengths of both in ways neither could achieve alone.

It had been a discussion between children that had included jokes about long noses and a preference for a mole that in the end never materialized...

Now they weren't children but adolescents, and he could see that dynamic he himself had suggested in direct action against him. Though not at its maximum expression yet… Taro was just beginning to explore the complete possibilities of the concept, but already parts of the central idea of the duo were manifesting on the field.

Just as for Liu the sound from his two beasts helped each other creating resonances that amplified and better controlled sonic attacks, and for Larissa the cold and agility of her second beast would play an important role once she completely mastered ice, for Taro the special organic mineral was, if used well, the most versatile and dangerous armor/weapon that could be manifested.

The Terror could in fact use that mineral under Taro's command in very interesting ways already, perhaps better than the beetle itself at certain points.

It was a fascinating paradox that Ren had noticed long ago during his analyses of his mushroom's information about different beast combinations.

Two beasts that were natural enemies in nature, predator and prey or competitors for the same ecological niche... but when they shared a bond with the same tamer, they revealed a relationship more intertwined than that of their original ecosystem.

The inherent conflict transformed into forced cooperation that eventually converted into incredible synergy. Oftentimes better than that of Mako and Shizu's beasts.

And with that synergy, the mineral the beetle created would strengthen thanks to the relationship with the Terror. Its use would perfect itself as the two beasts learned to coordinate their capabilities through the shared bond with Taro. It was a process that would take years to reach its final form, but the foundations were already being established in this very moment.

The Terror's ability to adhere "death trophies" to its back, that morbid capacity that allowed the creature to collect cores from fallen enemies as macabre decoration, was no longer as simple as it had been when the beast was younger. Now it could adhere and enhance certain materials, not just organic but also minerals and metals, transforming them through processes Ren didn't completely understand but that clearly functioned.

With the connection to the beetle through Taro's shared bond, and with the bonuses that came from having both beasts manifested sequentially in battle, the Terror now had much more special synergy with the living mineral than it could ever achieve as an unbonded beast.

The armor of minerals scattered around the Terror began moving apparently on its own, fragments covering the creature's legs as if attracted by an invisible magnetism.

The pieces of yellow mineral adhered to the multiple legs, covering them in layers that fused with the creature's natural chitinous exoskeleton.

And then they began to glow…

Not with the yellow light of the original mineral but with orange and black tones that pulsed in patterns suggesting an active transformation occurring in real time. The mineral was being enhanced, the new 'material enhancement' ability that Taro had been practicing during months manifesting with effectiveness that exceeded what he'd shown in previous training sessions.

Ren smiled again seeing the process develop. Taro was already improving his control over this complex technique, refinement visible even in the middle of a high-intensity battle and even under the pain of the broken bond.

It was a type of progress that came from improving better under real pressure like the protagonist of some heroic tale.

But again, Ren didn't waste time admiring his friend's growth at the cost of giving away his own advantage. If Taro was establishing defenses and preparing an offensive, then Ren needed to interrupt that process before it reached its final form.

The hydra's core had just finished spinning to recover its external energy...

He ordered the beast to fire while it still could, before the Terror completed its transformation and was ready to counterattack with full force.