Novel Full Chapter 494 - Taming Rewards
Chapter 494: Chapter 494 – Taming Rewards
The group that had entered the castle in pieces and almost made pieces was now complete, everyone healed and gathered in one of the main chambers.
Dragarion was about to ask Ren some important questions after he had sent his letter, but the boy got ahead with his own agenda.
“First of all,” Ren said, approaching the group members who still hadn’t received a certain special ability, “I want to give, to those who are missing it, the power to fuse their beasts without needing to touch the second ring.”
He had already done this with Lin, the girls, and Selphira during previous events, but Victor, Arturo, Julius, Sirius, Dragarion, and Zhao could still obtain the upgrade. All the doubles, who now had sufficient energy to not be too affected by being transformed for a bit, could benefit significantly from that last resort card.
“My control is much more precise now that I have a Silver beast (and the three rings integrated),” Ren explained while approaching each one. “I can guide you better in the process to spend less energy during the trial.”
The process was efficient and quick. Ren touched each tamer, activating the improved fusion capability through the mana connections he could now manipulate with almost inhuman precision. The recipients immediately felt the difference, a new capability in accessing their fused forms.
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Finally, Dragarion decided to address the questions that had been accumulating in his mind since witnessing the boy’s extraordinary capabilities.
“Ren,” he began, adopting the tone he used for important interrogations, “I need to know more about you. What family do you come from? How did you manage to obtain so much knowledge at your age?”
“I owe it to my beast,” Ren responded honestly, but without hesitating before royal authority.
Was it the casualness of his king?
“What beast is it exactly?” the king pressed, his curiosity genuinely awakened.
“I obtained a spore from a gray egg,” Ren explained, observing how Dragarion’s expression shifted from curiosity to surprise.
The king didn’t completely understand the implications, but was surprised that someone had managed to evolve a beast that was notoriously difficult to understand and believed impossible to develop. He remembered the small fungus that now rested inside Ren.
The gray eggs were legendary for the general disappointment they caused. Most tamers who received them considered it a form of cosmic mockery, a cruel joke played by fate on those unlucky enough to be poor.
“I understand now that the little one that opened the door is the spore’s evolution,” he observed. “But what exactly is your beast’s power? Its numbers, its capabilities…”
Everyone stayed attentive now, collective curiosity focusing on Ren.
Ren began from the beginning, and happily told them his progression.
“From 10% in Iron it went to 20% in Bronze 1, then to 30%, and right now it’s already Silver 1 with a 50% increase in Vitality, Strength, Intelligence, and Perception,” he explained with the enthusiasm of someone sharing good news.
But as he spoke, he noticed that the expressions around him were becoming progressively gloomier…
What he was happily describing meant so little compared to a common Tier 1 or 2 beast, much less a Tier 3 that provided 200% increases at the same level.
Ren noticed the change in atmosphere and his defensive instincts immediately activated.
“The beast my parents got me… My beast isn’t bad,” he declared firmly. “The increases are low now, but it gives me knowledge that can’t be quantified in simple numbers.”
Everyone nodded politely, but were clearly making their own conclusions. Knowledge was valuable, yes, but fell short when power increases were so minimal compared to available alternatives.
Ren began to get a little angry at the pitying looks he was receiving and resisted the impulse to give them, for a whole day, a small fungus in their heads.
“Besides, it can fuse you with its invisible roots,” he added, mentioning capabilities he had recently demonstrated.
“Being a support isn’t bad,” they tried to console him. “Helping others fuse is very useful for any group you help, without doubt…”
The king even added, “Without your help and having lost the ring, I was going to have trouble bringing out all my power, but now there are no limitations… You’re right.”
But there was still a slight tone of disappointment in the air.
Had they perhaps expected some type of legendary creature with greater enhancement than a Tier 3?
The girls laughed gently, trying to ease the tension.
“At least he’s a double,” Larissa said with a smile. “And he uses his Hydra very well.”
The king nodded in agreement, but then was visibly surprised.
“Wait,” he said, processing information that hadn’t clicked before. “Did you find another ruin? Because I was thinking of giving you special rewards since your beast helped open the door…”
“Yes,” Larissa confirmed on Ren’s behalf. “He had already been the first to enter a ruin previously, a “treasure hunt winner” as you say.”
She pointed toward her father with an amused expression.
“And the strange rules of my own father, that is, the king in front of us, are what had already given him the right to be a noble. He just has to fulfill the education requirement you imposed.”
Dragarion laughed, recognizing his own policies being quoted back at him.
“Those who take risks should have good benefits,” he declared with that characteristic firmness his children associated with decisions that wouldn’t be reversed. “And I won’t go back on my word.”
“Very Dragarion-like,” his three sons murmured in unison.
The response was automatic and fond, showing how well they knew their father’s stubborn integrity. Once he made a promise, especially regarding rewards for courage, nothing could make him reconsider.
“I give you the right to decide who receives part of the double potions,” the king announced. “We won’t keep them because we need power immediately, so I can’t directly give them to you.”
He paused, calculating mentally.
“I also add a lifetime pension of one million of the crystals that were behind the door, which are now resources of our kingdom and all its inhabitants.”
Selphira immediately complained.
“It’s very little for what his beast did in helping to open that door without one of the rings,” she protested, though she knew Ren had gained access to the third ring in ways she preferred not to examine too closely again.
“Since he’s small, I don’t want to ruin him with too much wealth while he’s a minor,” Dragarion explained. “But instead I’ll support him in his cultivation if it turns out too costly.”
He moved closer to Ren, adopting a less formal posture.
“I also give you access to part of the artifacts. Most are for hiding mana or resisting it…”
He placed a diamond elixir in Ren’s hands.
“I leave you an elixir in your name since I feel you won’t waste it,” he continued, then got down to the child’s level to speak more directly. “I’m surprised you’re not already a noble, but don’t feel less because of that.”
“I wouldn’t wish to have been born in any other family,” Ren responded firmly.
Larissa smiled at the response, and Dragarion saw her, seeming to understand something.
“I give you access to the vault at Larissa’s discretion,” he declared, “and to Larissa access at Julius and Arturo’s discretion.”
Victor snorted audibly at being excluded from the chain of authority, but didn’t protest verbally.
“Although you’re a double with only one battle beast, you have a great future I want to defend,” the king continued. “The territory that was left without leaders is going to need solid and wise guidance in the future.”
Ren scratched his head, processing words he hadn’t expected.
“I don’t want that much responsibility,” he admitted honestly.
“Don’t worry, it will be when you’re an adult,” Dragarion reassured him. “Meanwhile… Zhao can help you learn.”
Zhao grabbed his head with visible concern, but Larissa immediately volunteered too.
“Julius and I can also help.”
Julius sighed but nodded in acceptance.
Liora added herself and Selphira to the support network, and Luna wanted to add Sirius but stopped. Instead, she decided to offer her support somewhat awkwardly.
“I can also… help if you need something…”
Luna became increasingly red and her father increasingly narrowed his eyes at the spectacle.
Ren tried to cover the uncomfortable silence that followed by returning to his original defensive stance.
“My beast isn’t bad,” he insisted again, still annoyed that they saw it as the weak link in his power as a double.
So he added information that changed everything.
“Besides, the spore has the advantage of being a wild card that doesn’t count in the beasts in my system when it reaches a certain level. So I can have another beast now that I’m Silver.”
He didn’t want them to see him as closer to the abyssals, so he invented a half-truth thanks to information about common spores he intended to divulge anyway.
For a moment, everyone stared at him in stunned silence.
Then they were surprised and excited simultaneously.
The revelation recontextualized everything. What had seemed like a disadvantageous beast suddenly became something extraordinary. The ability to exceed normal beast limits without corruption was the stuff of legends, not disappointments.
“Does that apply to everyone who has spores?” Arturo asked with growing excitement.
“Mine is golden and isn’t like the common ones,” Ren clarified. “But yes… common ones can also become wild cards at Gold rank, as long as they haven’t ruined their cultivation.”
His eyes gleamed with the enthusiasm of sharing knowledge.
“I intend to give people a book on common spore cultivation so more people can benefit.”
The implications were staggering. If Ren could provide cultivation methods for previously worthless beasts, it would revolutionize the tamer system. Disappointed tamers could suddenly find hope for advancement.
Luna leaned forward with evident curiosity.
“So, what will your new beast be?”